Veins and lymphatic vessels drain along the edges of the segment.

The segments are separated from each other by layers of connective tissue that forms them into discrete anatomical and functional units.

This separation means that a bronchopulmonary segment can be surgically removed without affecting the function of the others.

Some of the segments may fuse in the left lung to form usually eight to nine segments (four to five in the upper lobe and four to five in the lower lobe.

The delineation of the bronchopulmonary segments was made by Chevalier Jackson and John Franklin Huber at Temple University Hospital.