Question

A patient has an arterial blood gas (ABG) test done. The blood work results are displayed in the table.

blood pH	[HCO−3][HCO3−] (mEq/L)	pCO2pCO2 (mmHg)
7.32	29	50

Which type of condition does the patient have?

respiratory acidosis

metabolic alkalosis

metabolic acidosis

respiratory alkalosis

Which was the initial chemical change?

[HCO−3][HCO3−]

pCO2pCO2

What could be the cause of this condition?

asthma

laxative abuse

renal failure

hyperventilation

overdose on sedatives

hypoventilation

Answer 1

Normal Values

Partial pressure of co2 in our human body is 38 - 42 mmHg.

The arterial blood pH of our human body is 7.38 to about 7.42.

The bicarbonate value of our human body is - (HCO3) - 22 - 28 mEq/L.

Question no 1

It is respiratory acidosis as pH is 7.32 and paco2 is 50 mmHg. The normal pH of our human body is between 7.38 to 7.42 pH . So here the pH is 7.32 and when the pH is lower than the normal level then it is acidic in nature. The CO2 level is above normal' so we can conclude that it is respiratory acidosis. That is when CO2 accumulate it will cause the pH to decrease . So option a is the correct answer and option b ,c and d are wrong

Question no 2

Initial change is increased CO2 in blood that is which is very high above the normal value as it is the causes for the acidic nature of the blood . So the initial change will be in CO2

Question no 3

Hypoventilation is the cause as it will slow down the excretion of CO2 in our human body . The retention of the CO2 is the cause so option d is the correct answer.

Option a ,b,c and e are wrong as they will not cause respiratory acidosis and retention of CO2