In this video I'm going to teach you the easiest way to remember ABG's, and to get them right
on your nursing school exams.
Hey friend, I'm Christina Rafano from nursingschoolofsuccess.com and you are watching the Nursing School Show
where we give you the tips and the resources that you need to totally own nursing school.
And today, we are talking about a topic that so many nursing students struggle with, it's
one of the biggest questions I get: how to learn (and remember) arterial blood gas interpretation,
or ABG's for short.
Seriously, this is a topic that so many nursing students struggle with, and I bet you can
relate, I was right there with you, totally.
So today I'm going to walk you through 3 simple (and kinda fun) questions to ask to get ABG's
right every single time in nursing school.
And be sure to watch all the way until the end of this video because, of course, I have
a free cheat sheet for you that will help you to remember all of this.
So, let's do it.
So when you think of ABG's, I want you to think about one, big, PARTY.
Yes!
Think about ABG's like a huge, huge party.
But...it's a mystery party.
And there are 3 things that you need to figure out at this mystery party.
So I'll give you the 3 questions here first, and then we'll walk through each one.
So the first question that you'll need to ask is, "Where is this party happening?"
Where is the ABG party going down?
The second question you'll ask is, "Who is the party pooper?"
Yep, you need to figure out who the party pooper is.
And finally, the third question you'll ask is, "Is the 'Life of the Party' helping to
make the party better?"
Or is the 'Life of the Party' just being kinda lame and letting the party pooper bring everybody
down.
So those are the 3 questions that you'll need to ask about this ABG mystery party.
So now, let's walk through each one of these questions.
So our first question is: Where is this ABG party happening?
Now, there are 2 choices, the party is either happening at some run-down, creepy warehouse,
and it's a party where everybody be straight up trippin' on some acid.
Or it's at a nightclub and it's all about dat base.
(See what I did there?)
So to figure out where this party is happening, you need to look at the pH level and decide
where the party is going down: is it an acid party or is it a base party?
So look at the pH level, and if the pH level is less than 7.4, you know the party is an
ACID party and it's in some creepy warehouse somewhere.
If the pH is greater than 7.4, you know that it's a base party, and it's in some fancy
nightclub.
Now when you figure out where the party is located, you need to ask yourself the second
question: Who is the party pooper?
Who is making this party just no fun at all?
So, there are 2 choices here as well: either the lungs are the party poopers, or the kidneys
are the party poopers.
Now, for this, you'll need to look at the PaCO2 level (which represents the lungs) and
the HCO3 level (which represents the kidneys).
So normal PaCO2 is between 35-45 mmHg.
And normal HCO3 is between 22-26 mEq/L. If the pH is acidic, and the PaCO2 is higher
than normal, that means that the lungs are bringing way too much acid to the party, and
they are the party poopers.
Now, if the pH is basic and the HCO3 level is higher than normal, then that means the
kidneys got way too carried away with all that base, and they are the party poopers.
So you need to figure out who the party pooper is.
Look at the PaCO2 and the HCO3 levels and decide who the party pooper is.
Is it the lungs?
Or is it the kidneys?
Now that you've got that figured out, you need to ask yourself the third and final question:
Is the "Life of the Party" (meaning, the non-party-pooper) trying to help make the party better.
So, let's say that the lungs are the party poopers, but the HCO3 value is still within
normal range.
Well, then the kidneys haven't noticed that the lungs are being the party poopers, but
they aren't doing anything to make the party more fun.
But if the HCO3 level is starting to increase, that means that the kidneys did notice.
They said, "Oh man, this party is getting a little dull, we need to turn up the base."
And if the kidneys are the party poopers, but the PaCO2 level is normal, then the lungs
haven't done anything to help their party out.
But if the PaCO2 value is starting to increase, then the lungs are trying to add a little
more acid to the party and get everyone to be having a better time.
So, there are your 3 questions to ask: Where is the ABG party located?
Who is the party pooper, is it the lungs or is it the kidneys?
And, is the "Life of the Party" trying to help?
Now, let's talk about compensated versus uncompensated ABG values.
Uncompensated means that the "Life of the Party" hasn't noticed that anything is wrong.
It's value is still within normal range, and the pH is still messed up.
Partially compensated means that the "Life of the Party" has noticed that the party pooper
is being, well, a party pooper, but they haven't had enough time to make the party fun again.
The pH is still out of wack, even though the "Life of the Party's" value is changing to
try to compensate.
Now, full compensation happens when the "Life of the Party" has done their job well.
Their value has changed and the pH has gone back within normal range.
Alright, so let's walk through an example here:
Let's say that we have a patient who's lab values are a pH of 7.33, a PaCO2 of 55, and
an HCO3 of 26.
Now, let's walk through our questions: Where is this party happening?
Well, the pH is acidic because it's less than 7.4.
So the party is at some run-down creepy warehouse.
So we know that the problem is too much acid, so we're dealing with acidosis.
Now, who is the party pooper?
The PaCO2 value is way too high, so the lungs are being super duper party poopers.
So we know the problem is respiratory and the lungs are the party poopers.
Number three: Is the "Life of the Party" helping to make the party better?
Well, the HCO3 value is still within normal range, so the kidneys haven't noticed that
the lungs are raining on everybody's parade.
So the "Life of the Party" hasn't noticed, and the pH is still messed up, so we know
that it is uncompensated.
So this example is uncompensated respiratory acidosis.
If you want a free cheat sheet to help you out with ABG's in nursing school, just click
the link in the description below, I'll put a link there, and I'll send it right to you.
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Thanks for watching friend, now go become the nurse that God created only you to be.
And I'll catch you next time on the nursing school show.