Overdistention of airways and alveoli, sometimes leading to emphysema, caused by obstructive lung disease; occurs reversibly with asthma, and can occur locally with aspiration of a foreign body with a subsequent ball-valve phenomenon. [hyper- + inflation]
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hy·per·in·fla·tion .hī-pə-rin-'flā-shən n excessive inflation (as of the lungs)
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hy·per·in·fla·tion (hi″pər-in-flaґshən) excessive inflation or expansion, as of the lungs; called also overinflation.Medical dictionary. 2011.