please help me understand blood gases!

BittyBabyGrower, MSN, RN · Jul 7, 2005

Your best bet is to make yourself a cheat sheet. Also, utilize the RT's in your unit. It is just memorization. Does your hospital offer the STABLE program? They have a great chart to use in the book.

lisailovenicu · Jul 18, 2005

Hi Everyone,
I am new to the NICU and I am having trouble with blood gas interpretation. I just can't seem to figure out how to remember it all. Please help me understand this better. Thanks in advance for helping me out!!!!

Your blood gas normals vary depending on the baby condition and age...If you remember the ph should be around 7.3 and co2 for a new just born baby 30's to 40's and po2 vary depending on baby; Your bicarb should be 20ish and base excess less than @9-10. If you have a low ph and the co2 is normal and base excessive it's metabolic and you need bicarb..If the ph is low and the co2 high then it is respiratory and you need higher vent settings or some other resp intervention...if ph is high, co2 low then wean baby...of if ph is high, and co2 high it's metabolic and you need adjustment of ivf...not sure if I helped at all or that's what you wanted to know???remember excess bicarb converts to co2 so don't give bicarb if co2 already high...