Member-only story
Why Lying Face-Down Helps Relieve Coronavirus Symptoms
How ‘proning’ Covid-19 patients helps them breathe
Thousands of patients suffering from severe cases of Covid-19 are experiencing a simple treatment in hospitals throughout the world: They are being placed face-down on their hospital bed in a practice known as proning. This change in position is often enough to improve lung functionality and reduce the impact of respiratory distress caused by Covid-19.
The Lungs and Gravity
The lungs are remarkably complex in functionality. As the primary interface for gas exchange in the body, the lungs are a dynamic organ that responds to minute changes in the internal and external environments to maximize oxygen transfer and carbon dioxide removal.
When a person breathes in, air is pulled through the airways into a network of microscopic sacs called alveoli. Waiting on the other side of a thin barrier within millions of capillaries are red blood cells lined up ready to receive the incoming oxygen.
Based on the demand, position, and health of the lungs, this network of blood vessels dilate and constrict to maximize gas transfer — all under the orchestration of hormone and nerve signals. In one breath, the lungs saturate the blood in the pulmonary system with oxygen to…
