Question

how did acidosis and alkalosis relate to nursing profession and medicine?.give example

Answer 1

Many critical illnesses can alter a patient's acid-base balance. Disturbance in acid-base equilibrium may indicate other underlying diseases or organ damage. Simultaneous measurements of arterial pH and plasma electrolytes, as well as knowledge of compensatory physiologic mechanisms is required for accurate measuring acid base balance. So the change in acid base balance tells condition of patient, even the slight change in the values should be monitored by the nurses to avoid complications in patient.

A normal range for arterial pH is 7.35 to 7.45. Acidosis is a pH less than 7.35; alkalosis is a pH greater than 7.45. Because pH is measured in terms of hydrogen (H+) ion concentration, an increase in H+ ion concentration decreases pH and vice versa. Changes in H+ ion concentration can be stabilized through several buffering systems: bicarbonate-carbonic acid, proteins, hemoglobin, and phosphates.

Acidosis, therefore, can be described as a physiologic condition caused by the body's inability to buffer excess H+ ions. At the other end, alkalosis results from a deficiency in H+ ion concentration. Acidemia and alkalemia refer to the process of acidosis or alkalosis, respectively, occurring in arterial blood