Biology Respiration / Gaseous Exchange MDCAT 2018
PMDC Verified Question 23 of 34
The low levels of surfactant produced by alveolar epithelium causes:
A
Emphysema
B
Bronchitis
C
Respiratory distress syndrome
D
Asthma
Tap any option to test your recall and reveal the step-by-step Propolis autopsy.

Propolis Cognitive Error Autopsy

Official Correct Choice:
Option C: Respiratory distress syndrome
Concept: Surfactant is a lipoprotein complex that decreases surface tension inside alveoli, preventing them from collapsing during exhalation.

Solution:
  • If Type II pneumocytes fail to produce adequate surfactant (commonly seen in premature infants), the surface tension inside the alveoli becomes too high.
  • This leads to alveolar collapse and severe breathing difficulty, a condition medically termed as Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS).


Why other options are incorrect:
  • Emphysema: Destruction of alveolar walls, not a lack of surfactant.
  • Bronchitis / Asthma: Inflammatory diseases of the airways (bronchi/bronchioles), not directly caused by alveolar surfactant deficiency.

Quality & Fidelity Assurance: Every question on BeambePrep is rigorously curated against the official PMDC syllabus with zero filler, zero out-of-syllabus content, and zero typos. When an authentic past paper originally contained a historical mistake or ambiguity from the examining board (such as UHS or NUMS), BeambePrep faithfully reflects the original paper while detailing the nuance and scientific consensus in the autopsy above.

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