Arterial Blood Gas

abg acid base arterial blood gas haemoglobin hypoxia monitoring Sep 09, 2024
An arterial blood gas is a sample of arterial blood, collected in a dedicated, heparinised syringe and analysed at the point of care. The sample must be taken from an artery, either via an arterial line or aspirated directly using a syringe. πŸ’‰
 
What does it tell you? πŸ€”
 
What doesn’t it tell you! Here is the run down:
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Gas exchange: PaCO2, PaO2, SpO2, O2 content 🌬️
Assesses ventilation, gas exchange and oxygen availability.
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Acid/base status:  pH, bicarbonate, base excess βš–οΈ
Allows the cause and type of metabolic disturbance to be assessed.
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Haemoglobin: 🩸
A rough marker of bleeding, guides transfusion.
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Electrolytes:  Sodium, Potassium ⚑
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Blood Glucose 🍬
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Lactate πŸ§ͺ
A helpful marker of poor tissue perfusion as a result of bleeding, sepsis, or parts of the body that have compromised blood flow.
 
πŸ‘‰πŸ½ Extras: Methaemoglobin and carbon monoxide 🌑️
Other causes of abnormal oxygen delivery.
 
Putting this all together, the arterial blood gas is a simple and real-time method of diagnosing and managing disorders associated with:
 
πŸš‘ Trauma
🩸 Bleeding
β€οΈβ€πŸ©Ή Heart & Lung disease
🦠 Sepsis
βš–οΈ Acid/base disturbance
⚑ Electrolyte dysfunction
🩺 Renal disease
☠️ Poisoning and exposure
 
For more information about arterial blood gases, check out our Live Series session on Monitoring! πŸŽ₯
 
Build knowledge βœ…
Improve safety βœ…
 
Ref: Castro D, Patil SM, Zubair M, et al. Arterial Blood Gas. [Updated 2024 Jan 8]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536919/
 

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