Teresa Livermore got excited when her 3-year old grandson Dennis ate an unknown

Question

Teresa Livermore got excited when her 3-year old grandson Dennis ate an unknown amount of aspirin. She rushed him to the hospital for treatment. When they arrived at the emergency room, the child appeared bright and alert, but his grandmother was hyperventilating, and complained of light-headedness, and "pins and needles" in her hands and around her lips due to anxiety about her grandson. A quick blood-gas analysis showed Teresa's pCO_2 to be 28 mm Hg, and her bicarbonate was 22 mM. How does the pCO_2 value compare with normal? Rationalize why it is different. The normal pCO2

Explanation / Answer

A)

Normal range for pCO2 is 35-45 mmHg. And for bicarbonate is 22-26 mM.

In case of Teresa, reason was the stressor which stimulated CNS and resulted in hyperventilation.

Respiratory alkalosis will be diagnosed. It is an acid base disturbance. It can be characterized by elevated arterial pH, hyperventilation resulting in a low pCO2.

Related Questions

Navigate

• Browse (All)
• Browse T
• Subjects

---

---

Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.