ABG Analysis
Lessons Related To ABG Analysis
I love ABGs!
To me, there is nothing more enjoyable than looking at an ABG and contemplating over what changes we can make to improve the patient’s condition.
- Should we increase the vent rate?
- Should we give some bicarb?
- Up the pressure support?
- Run a lactic acid?
All that might seem overwhelming at first but once you understand that the numbers align with actual data the patient is giving us . . . it almost becomes a mystery you are trying to solve.
With ABGs you are really trying to analyze and fix one of three things . . . Hydrogen, CO2, or Bicarb.
To help you with analyzing ABGs, we have created a cheatsheet that outlines:
- What lab values you will see with a given ABG finding.
- What assessment findings you will see.
- Causes for the abnormality.
- Possible solutions.