Arterial blood gases (ABGs) and acid base balance can be really hard to learn in nursing school.
In this video series on arterial blood gases, we’ll dive into the 4 key things you need to know when studying ABGs in nursing school:
1. Metabolic Acidosis
2. Respiratory Acidosis
3. Metabolic Alkalosis
4. Respiratory Alkalosis
In this video, we’ll talk about the 3rd one: metabolic alkalosis, and everything you need to know about it for nursing school.
Here’s what we’ll talk about:
1. The underlying cause of metabolic acidosis (the pathophysiology)
2. 2 KEY POINTS you NEED to know about it (seriously, you will be tested on this in nursing school!)
3. The 4 main causes of metabolic alkalosis
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In this video we’re breaking down metabolic alkalosis so you can finally understand what it is, what causes it, and what you need to know about it for nursing school. And before we get started, make sure to hit that subscribe button and click the notification bell so you never miss any nursing school tips and tricks that I have for you. Now, let’s do it.
Hey there friend, Christina here with nursingsos.com here to help you raise your grades and have more free time in nursing school.
So metabolic alkalosis is one of 4 main categories you need to know about when you study arterial blood gases in nursing school: you’ve also got respiratory alkalosis, metabolic acidosis, and respiratory acidosis. We’ll talk about these other 3 in the other videos in this series. So if you need help with those, be sure to check those other videos out after this.
Metabolic alkalosis can mean 2 things: there is a decrease in the amount of acid in the body, or there is too much base. Often times, these 2 go hand in hand, so it could actually be BOTH of them that are causing the problem. But it all comes down to one simple thing: the blood is more BASIC, or more alkaline. And you can determine this by looking at the pH value of the blood.
A normal pH value is between 7.35 and 7.45. When the pH is less than 7.4, it’s more ACIDIC. When the pH is greater than 7.4, it’s more BASIC.
And in the case of metabolic alkalosis, the pH is greater than 7.4, because it’s ALKALOSIS, meaning it’s more basic or alkaline.
So here’s what’s happening during metabolic alkalosis: the blood is becoming more BASIC because there is a DECREASE in hydrogen ions (which are ACIDs), or there’s an INCREASE in bicarbonate (which is a BASE).
Now here’s are 2 KEY things you need to know, these are really important because they will show up on your exam, so pay attention:
Key point number one: hydrogen ions, the ACIDS we’re talking about, are found in the urine and in stomach acid. Those are the 2 places I want you to remember: urine has acids, and stomach acid is (obviously) an acid.
Now key point number two: giving a lot of whole blood to a patient can increase their bicarbonate level because of how the body processes that blood (parts of it get converted into bicarbonate).
So here’s how this all fits together and what professors just LOVE to test you on: the causes of metabolic alkalosis.
Metabolic alkalosis is caused by urine being lost (through diuretics, or an increase in aldosterone), stomach acid being lost (through vomiting or suctioning), too much intake of bicarbonate, and a large amount of whole blood transfusions. Those are the 4 causes of metabolic alkalosis you need to remember.
Now, if you’re struggling with how to interpret ABGs and just wish someone would walk you through it, I’ve got free cheat sheet and a video for you where I walk you through arterial blood gas interpretation, step-by-step. I put the link to that cheat sheet and the video in the description for you to check it out.
And if this video helped you understand metabolic alkalosis better, write LOVE in the comments below. As always, I want to hear from you. And I’ll see you in the next video.
