Ms. Taylor, 68 years old, has been vomiting for 3 days. On the day of admission

Question

Ms. Taylor, 68 years old, has been vomiting for 3 days. On the day of admission to the hospital, she feels agitated and anxious. Her breathing appears slow and shallow. When questioned when she started hypo ventilating, she answers 1 day ago. Her lab results, and normal lab values, are given in the following table. What is the primary disturbance: respiratory acidosis, respiratory alkalosis, metabolic acidosis, or metabolic alkalosis? Why are changes in pH of the blood dangerous? How is her body attempting to compensate, and is it successful? Explain.

Explanation / Answer

Primary disturbance is the respiratory acidosis. It is due to the increased concentration of CO2 in blood. This results in decreased blood pH.

Changes in blood pH are dangerous as change in pH makes blood protiens inactive because protiens with diverse functions like enzymes work best at a particular temperature. It also results in cellular damage.

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