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Title: RESPIRATORY SYSTEM HELP!!! Post by: celticsin2011 on Jan 7, 2011 A person is brought to the emergency room unconscious. Breathing was shallow and irregular. A blood sample showed the blood pH to be 7.18 (normal pH=7.4) A mechanical respirator, which increased breathing rate, was inserted ans sodium bicarbonate was administered intravenously.
a) Explain why the breathing rate lowers the blood pH b)How does the respirator help to return the blood pH to normal c) What was the reason for administering the sodium bicarbonate Title: Re: RESPIRATORY SYSTEM HELP!!! Post by: bio_man on Jan 7, 2011 Celtics Fan?
(a) At low breathing rates, there is a relatively large amount of carbon dioxide in the blood. CO2 is acidic. (b) The respirator increases the level of oxygen in the bloodstream. When O2 enters the red blood cells, it binds to hemoglobin. This releases the CO2 from the red blood cell, where it is then exhaled. This raises the pH to normal levels. (c) The sodium bicarbonate was administered to prevent acidosis from occurring. It does this by reacting with H+ ions in the blood, forming H2CO3. H2CO3 is then converted to free CO2 and H2O by the enzyme carbonic anhydrase. The CO2 gas can then be expelled. Good Luck :) |