Is normal pH, but abnormal Pco2, & -HCO3:H2CO3 levels "compensated" respiratory/ metabolic acidosis/alkalosis?
373976
Monocube kind of has the right idea, but not really. The first thing you look at is the pH. Normal range is 7.35 - 7.45, with the absolute being 7.4. the lower the #, the more acidic it is, and the higher it is the more alkalotic. \n\nThe next thing you look at is the PaCO2. Normal = 35 - 45. When CO2 mixes w/ H20, you get carbonic acid, so increased PaCO2 will cause the pH to be more acidic (lower pH), decreased - more alkaline (higher pH).\n\nThen you look at the HCO3 level. Normal is 22-26. Bicarb is alkaline. The higher the bicarb level, the more alkaline (higher pH) and decreased bicarb = more acidic (lower ph).\n\nSo, lets make up a blood gas:\npH 7.28  PaCO2 74 HCO3 26 (we'll forget the other results for now & concentrate on this part)\n\nOk, so we see that the pH is low, so this is an acidic result. Now - what's causing it? The respiratory system, or the kidneys? Our CO2 (respiratory) is high, which means acidic. The bicarb is normal, so it is not a metabolic (kidney) problem. This is a respiratory acidosis.\n\n And you want to know about compensation...compensated means that it is a chronic problem. Something that has been going on for awhile, and the body has had time to fix the problem, and return the pH back to the normal level. \nThe example we have above is an acute problem. The bicarb level is normal. It takes at least 24 hours for the kidneys to try to compensate for a respiratory problem. This is an acute respiratory acidosis.\n\nIf we change the values - pH 7.33, same PaCO2 - 74, and HCO3 of 32, then we see that the kidneys have now started to fix the problem. Our pH is still acidic, still caused by a respiratory issue, but the bicarb is now elevated, so this is a partially compensated respiratory acidosis.\n\nOnce again, changing values to pH 7.37, PaCO2 74, HCO3 36. Now our pH is in the normal range. BUT, this is where people get messed up - you have to remember that the absolute normal is 7.40. This pH is on the acidic side, even though it is in the normal range. So then you look at the other values. the CO2 is very high, but so is the bicarb.\n I have seen Doctors and nurses who are unfamiliar with blood gas interpretation freak out on a gas like this. Is this patient in respiratory distress? NO! let me explain why. This is a compensated respiratory acidosis. The pH is back in the normal range! This is a typical blood gas for a COPD patient. This is where they "live". They retain CO2, their levels are always high, so the kidneys "compensate".\n\n If you have more questions, feel free to email me at mike.marlow@yahoo.com I hope this helps you.
729947
No one is gonna be able to answer this with that little information.  Why did you post in diabetes?  Do you know what proton pumps are?  They have nothing to do with diabetes- they make acid.
857408
A higher than normal ALT level does not necessarily mean more serious disease. Also known as: Serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase, SGPT.    Formal name: Alanine aminotransferase.\n\nNormal results\nNormal values vary from laboratory to laboratory, and should be available to your physician at the time of the test. An informal survey of some laboratories indicates many laboratories find values from approximately seven to 50 IU/L to be normal.\n\nAbnormal results\nLow levels of ALT (generally below 300 IU/L) may indicate any kind of liver disease. Levels above 1,000 IU/L generally indicate extensive liver damage from toxins or drugs, viral hepatitis, or a lack of oxygen (usually resulting from very low blood pressure or a heart attack). A briefly elevated ALT above 1,000 IU/L that resolves in 24-48 hours may indicate a blockage of the bile duct. More moderate levels of ALT (300-1,000IU/L) may support a diagnosis of acute or chronic hepatitis.\nIt is important to note that persons with normal livers may have slightly elevated \nAs can be seen 87 above 50 but less than 300 but not serious enough.  But take all care for not damaging the liver further and this can also be due to muscle damage and not necessarily liver.\nVR
668599
The ph has a huge effect on the Respiratory system.\nYour body will try to compensate to keep your ph between 7.35-7.45 at all times.\nCo2 is acid\nHCO3 (bicarb) is a buffer\nand they will be adjusted to regulate the ph\nThe way the respiratory system is involved is with the co2\n\nwhen a patient ie... diabetic ketoacidosis has a bicarb of 5, ur body is extremly aciddic... so the respiratory rate will increase and u will have kussmal respirations, fast and hard.... ur body is trying to blow off co2, to make the body more alkolitic.. and raise the ph from the lowered hco3...\n\nnext when a patient is retaining co2, and the ph goes way down, the hco3 goes up to try to bugger the acidic effect of the co2, ur body will breathe slower... and this is a respiratory failure...
524680
The doctor who ordered this blood test should be able to walk through this with you.  At the very least, there should be a nursing line that you can call and ask.  \n\nMost blood results I have received have shown right on the print out what is too low, too high, or within the normal range.  This is a good starting place, but anything abnormal should really be discussed with your healthcare practitioner.
352124
It is commonly believed that the ventilatory threshold occurs because of a decrease in blood pH. When muscles exercise at  low intensity, very little lactate is produced. However, lactate, like ventilation, is produced at high intensities of exercise. The transition between small amounts of lactate production and large amounts occurs over a small range of intensities and, in fact, nearly coincides with the ventilatory threshold. This makes sense because the lactate production is associated with a decrease in pH, which is then buffered by bicarbonate (Henderson-Hasselbach Equation), resulting in an increase in blood pCO2. Chemoreceptors then stimulate the brain to increase ventilation which returns pCO2  to normal.\n\nAlthough this makes physiological sense, it is not completely accurate. Patients with McArdle's Disease, are unable to produce lactate, and therefore have no lactate threshold. However, they still have a ventilatory threshold. Therefore, there is more to the ventilatory threshold than just pH, which we already knew because the two points do not occur at exactly the same intensity.
806903
b) is the answer...\n\nAlkalosis is when the pH buffer present in the blood (the carbonic acid-bicarbonate ion buffer system) fails to prevent the pH from going up.   There are two types of alkalosis: respiratory and metabolic.\n\nRespiratory alkalosis occurs when hyperventilation results in decreased blood concentration of CO2: since CO2 is the basis of the buffer system, its decrease will also result in the decrease of carbonic acid and bicarbonate concentrations.\n\nMetabolic alkalosis results from altered metabolism (vomiting, diarrhea...)\n\nFor more info...\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffer_solution\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alkalosis
179057
It's not C.  An increase in pH makes a solution more alkaline, meaning less H+ in the fluids.\n\nI'm going to say A here because a rise in pH is associated with increased O2 binding to hemoglobin.
894833
Normally it would lead to respiratory alkalosis,\nbut remember blood gases are tricky  if the Base Excess is off or the HCO3 is off then the metabolic side may outweigh anything the respiratory system can do
359627
the p is partial pressure. if the po2 is 65 depending on the patient that is on the low side. the pco2 means the patint is breathing a little fast, but not a bad pco2... i wouldn't extubate unless i knew the rest of the blood gas was ok? if the ph was 7.35-7.5 i would....  if the patient looked okay.... pulled good volumes on the vent
1150092
When you hyperventilate, you breathe out excess carbon dioxide.\n\nWhen you breath out excess carbon dioxide, the pH of your blood gets affected (it becomes more basic).\n\nBy breathing into a paper bag, you breath the lost carbon dioxide back into your system, thus preventing a severe disruption in your blood's pH.\n\n-random physician
133368
Normal ph level is 7.35-7.45
618761
didn't you just answer your own question? ADD THE KOH TOO THE HNO3 AND THE pH IS NOW ADJUSTED! I'm not sure that it takes a rocket scientist to answer a question whose answer is inherently in the question. Perhaps I'm wrong, I'd consult a rocket scientist but aparently none of those ever get on Yahoo Answers, or maybe they're hiding from the onslaught of stupidity, afraid that their precious IQ's will be lowered by the wave after wave of terrible questions asked on this site.
278365
hi, \nthis site estimates ~1kg per day, but that is highly dependent on the person's activity level.\n\nsee the question " Q. Should we be concerned with human breathing as a source of CO2?" about 1/3 of the way down.\n\nhttp://cdiac.ornl.gov/pns/faq.html\n\ncheers!
131452
I think that you should at least do some investigations to find out why your ALT is elevated. Do you know what your bilirubin, GGT, and alkaline phosphatase levels were?
531899
Anxiety, fever, stimulant drugs, pain, sepsis(a toxic condition resulting from infection), hypobarism (high altitude), and any other condition in which ventilatory elimination of C02 exceeds it's production. Basically you are hyperventilating! These are all causes of respiratory alkalosis, so if you can manage to avoid all of these you should be okay.
16906
First you must know the following equation, which explains how the body \nbuffers the blood and removes carbon dioxide from tissues:\n\nHCO3- + H <-> H2CO3 <-> CO2 + H2O\n\nTheroretically, they are all in equilibrium. When you are hyperventilating, you are releasing an EXCESS of CO2. That means that in order to maintain equilibrium, you must make more CO2 (since you are getting rid of so much at one time). Therefore, you are using up hydrogen ions and producing CO2; this makes your blood alkaline (higher pH) because there are less protons (hydrogen ions). \n\nThis condition is known as respiratory alkalosis, because you are literally causing your blood to become alkaline from hyperventilating.