trachea

(trā'kē-ə)

1. Anatomy. A thin-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs. Also called windpipe.
2. Zoology. One of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other terrestrial arthropods.
3. Botany. One of the tubular conductive vessels in the xylem of vascular plants.

[Middle English trache, from Medieval Latin trāchēa, from Late Latin trāchīa, from Greek (artēria) trākheia, rough (artery), trachea (as opposed to the smooth vessels that carried blood and not air), feminine of trākhus, rough.]

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A tube, reinforced with cartilage and lined with ciliated epithelium, which extends from the larynx to the bronchi.

The tube connecting the mouth to the bronchial tubes that carries air to the lungs; the windpipe.

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Pertaining to or emanating from trachea.

• t. aspiration — see transtracheal aspiration.
• t. band sign — on contrast radiography of a dilated esophagus, the impression made ventrally by the trachea.
• t. collapse, collapsing trachea — a disorder of the tracheal membrane (trachealis muscle) or tracheal rings that results in a functional tracheal stenosis. Affected dogs, usually of miniature or toy breeds, have a cough and reduced exercise intolerance. See also goose honk cough.
• t. compression — pressure on the trachea sufficient to cause displacement and reduction in caliber, usually inside the thorax; most readily detected radiographically.
• t. cough — a nonproductive, or only slightly productive, resonant cough, often occurring in paroxysms and easily elicited by pressure on the cervical trachea. Typically associated with tracheitis.
• t. duct — paired lymphatic ducts running down the side of the trachea, commencing at the retropharyngeal lymph nodes, receiving tributaries from other nodes of the head and neck and terminating in either the thoracic duct or the jugular or other vein at the entrance to the chest.
• t. hypoplasia — a congenital defect in brachycephalic dogs in which the tracheal lumen is greatly reduced in size. Bronchopneumonia commonly occurs.
• t. inflammation — see tracheitis.
• t. intubation — refers usually to the passage of an endotracheal tube for the purposes of anesthesia, resuscitation or external control of respiration for any other reason. See also tracheal tube (below).
• t. lavage, t. wash — introduction of a tracheal catheter via a cutaneous incision between two tracheal rings, passage of the catheter to the bronchi, introduction of normal saline, aspiration of the saline, retrieval of the catheter.
• t. percussion — a sharp percussion stroke on the trachea creates a sound which can be auscultated over the lung area.
• t. rupture — due usually to blunt trauma; there is escape of air into surrounding tissues which results in subcutaneous and mediastinal emphysema.
• t. stenosis — may be congenital or acquired, resulting from trauma or surgical procedures on the trachea. Causes respiratory distress, coughing, and secondary infections of the upper respiratory tract.
• t. transection — occurs as a result of trauma, in cats particularly from hyperextension of the head and neck, causing dyspnea.
• t. tube — a metal tube used in horses that have a long-term obstruction of the upper respiratory system. Different to a tracheotomy tube it is a flattened tube fixed to a broad flange with suture holes at its edge and a bend of 90° at 0.5 inch from the flange. See also endotracheal tube.

The windpipe; a cartilaginous and membranous tube extending from the lower end of the larynx to its division into two bronchi.

• Head and Neck - trachea: main tube carrying air from larynx to two bronchi entering lungs
• Respiratory System - trachea: tube leading from mouth and nose down throat to lungs for in-and-out passage of air

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Trachea may refer to:

• Vertebrate trachea, or windpipe, in terrestrial vertebrates, such as birds and mammals
• Invertebrate trachea, in terrestrial invertebrates, such as insects and crustaceans
• Vessel elements in plants

See also

• Cilicia Trachaea, a district in Roman Asia Minor

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - luftrør, ånderør

Nederlands (Dutch)
luchtpijp

Français (French)
n. - trachée

Deutsch (German)
n. - Luftröhre, Trachee

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ανατ.) τραχεία

Italiano (Italian)
trachea

Português (Portuguese)
n. - traquéia (f)

Русский (Russian)
трахея, дыхательное горло

Español (Spanish)
n. - tráquea

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - luftstrupe, luftrör

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
气管, 螺旋纹管, 导管

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 氣管, 螺旋紋管, 導管

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 기관, 호흡관

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 気管

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) القصبه ألهوائيه, ألرغامي‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮קנה-הנשימה, גרגרת‬

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