Respiratory Acidosis: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

Running head: RESPIRATORY ACIDOSIS 1
RESPIRATORY ACIDOSIS
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RESPIRATORY ACIDOSIS 2
According to the case scenario, the patient has complaints of dyspnea and the
breakdown of the breakdown for the Arterial Blood Gas analysis incudes a pH of 7.30, pO2
60, pCO2 60, normal CXR and HCO3 28. The pH is low against a normal range of 7.35-7.45,
thus it indicates acidemia. The pO2 60 is low against a normal range of 80-100mmHg
(Mohammed & Abdelatief, 2016).The partial pressure of CO2 is higher at 60 against a
reference range of 35 to 45 mmHg. The normal range for the partial pressure of HCO3 is
usually 22 to 26 mEq/L, therefore HCO3 of 28 is high. Based on this, the differential
diagnosis would be respiratory acidosis which is partially compensated (Lun et al., 2016).
The elevated paCO2 is an indication of respiratory acidosis which results from the
patient’s poor ventilation and failure to exhale the CO2. High levels of CO2 results in
acidemia. The compensatory mechanism for the high CO2 levels is increased reabsorption of
bicarbonate in the renal system. Some of the clues of respiratory acidosis include dyspnea,
restlessness, confusion, tachycardia, dizziness, headache, dysrhythmias, lethargy, and coma
which may lead to mortality (Davidson, Banham, Elliott, Kennedy, Gelder, Glossop, & Foex,
2016).
In respiratory alkalosis, the patient has increased pH of more than 7.45 and decreased
paCO2. Metabolic acidosis is usually associated with decreased PaCO2 and low pH
secondary to a decrease in the level of bicarbonates. Lastly, the metabolic alkalosis presents
with increased PaCO2 and elevated pH level due to loss of hydrogen ions and elevated levels
of bicarbonates. Therefore, respiratory acidosis has its unique characteristics which are fit for
the patient based on the presenting complains and the analysis of Arterial Blood Gas findings
(Adrogue & Madias, 2014).
To treat the patient with respiratory acidosis, one should focus on the management of
the underlying illness that led to the disruption of the process of gaseous exchange and the