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Arterial Blood Gases (ABGs) are incredibly useful to a number of different physicians.
The results tell us the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the patient's blood stream, as well as how acidic or alkali the blood is and how the body is responding to abnormal changes in acidity.
For example, in an emergency setting, we might want to know how a person's Asthma attack is affecting their body's ability to carry oxygen around the body. In patient's that have taken an overdose, we will probably want to know what effect that poison has had on the acidity of their blood.
We also use this test to monitor the progress of patients over time. So with our asthmatic patient, they might present to the hospital wheezy and short of breath, but their ABG initially might 'just' show slightly reduced oxygen levels. However, as they begin to tire out, they become less able to blow off carbon dioxide, and the levels of CO2 will begin to rise. This is an extremely worrying sign, and may mean that the patient will need to be sedated and hooked up to a machine that can breathe for them (a ventilator).
ABGs are also useful in 'chronic' patients. Those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (smoker's lung disease) may become 'CO2 retainers'. This means that their body has become 'used to' not having normal oxygen levels and has compensated by running on lower oxygen. This has implications for these patients, because it means we generally can't put them on 100% oxygen (the type we normally prescribe in most cases). This is because these new 'high' oxygen levels will switch off the patient's drive to breath and they can, in theory, lose the impulse to breath all together.
So the ABG is really useful, and one of the more frequently used blood tests in a hospital setting. It's also cheap, easy-ish to obtain, and readily available.
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoAn arterial blood gas provides immediate and accurate assessment of gases in the blood and blood acidity.
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