Prognostic value of lactates in relation to gas analysis and acid-base status in patients with pulmonary embolism

Arterial blood gas (ABG) sampling is an essential investigation for assessment of acid-base status, oxygenation and ventilation in critical care practice. Arterial puncture to obtain arterial blood is more invasive procedure than venous and has more potential complications. To find out the correlation between arterial and peripheral venous blood gas values for pH, PCO2 and bicarbonate. Patients admitted in ICU requiring arterial blood gas analysis to determine their acid-base status or ventilatory status was included in the study. One milliliter of venous blood was obtained in a heparin flushed syringe within 5 minutes of getting arterial blood sample. Both labeled samples were processed immediately. Data were analyzed by student’s t-test. A total of 50 paired samples from 36 patients were evaluated. The mean differences between arterial and venous blood gas values for pH, PCO2 and bicarbonate were 0.02 units, -2.37 mmHg and -0.45 mEq/L respectively. Similarly, the correlation coefficients between arterial and venous parameters were 0.964, 0.881 and 0.906 for pH, PCO2 and bicarbonate respectively, which were statistically significant (p<0.001). Venous pH, PCO2 and bicarbonate showed a very high level of correlation with the respective arterial values.

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Peripheral venous blood gas analysis: An alternative to arterial blood gas analysis for resuscitation and monitoring of critically ill patients.

Bangladesh Critical Care Journal ◽

10.3329/bccj.v4i2.30023 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 92-95

Author(s):

ASM Areef Ahsan ◽

Mohammad Omar Faruq ◽

Kaniz Fatema ◽

Fatema Ahmed ◽

Debasish Kumar Saha ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Critically Ill ◽

Critically Ill Patients ◽

Base Excess ◽

Blood Gases ◽

Blood Gas Analysis ◽

Gas Analysis ◽

Blood Gas ◽

Acid Base ◽

Venous Sample ◽

Acid Base Status

Objective: This study was aimed to compare between arterial and peripheral venous samples for blood gases and acid base status in critically ill patients and to evaluate if venous sample is a better alternative for initial assessment and resuscitation.Methods: This prospective study was conducted on 50 patients of more than 18 years of age in the department of Critical Care Medicine, BIRDEM General Hospital. Arterial and peripheral venous samples were taken within five minutes of each other and analyzed immediately for blood gases and acid base status. Mean difference and Pearson's product moment correlation coefficient was used to compare the result.Results: Mean difference and correlation coefficient between arterial and peripheral venous sample for pH, bicarbonate, base excess, PaCO2 and TCO2 value showed high correlation (r > 0.9). Comparison of electrolyte and hematocrit between arterial and peripheral venous sample also showed high correlation (r > 0.9).Conclusion: Peripheral venous gas analysis for pH, bicarbonate, base excess, PCO2 and Electrolytes (Na+, K+) show good correlation with the respective arterial values. This result suggests that venous estimations can be an acceptable alternative to arterial measurements for managing critically ill patients.Bangladesh Crit Care J September 2016; 4 (2): 92-95

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