Arterial blood gas interpretation worksheet with answers

Free printable Arterial blood gas interpretation worksheet: 6 problems from easy to exam level, with an answer key. Print it or save it as a PDF.

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Name: ____________________   Date: ____________

1.Easy
pH7.357.457.31PaCO₂mmHg354574HCO₃⁻mmol/L222636respiratorymetabolicacidosisalkalosis

A practice arterial blood gas shows pH 7.31, PaCO₂ 74 mmHg (9.9 kPa) and HCO₃⁻ 36 mmol/L. Which primary disorder is it? Click the cell in the grid.

pH 7.31PaCO₂ 74 mmHg (9.9 kPa)HCO₃⁻ 36 mmol/L
  1. 1respiratory acidosis
  2. 2metabolic acidosis
  3. 3respiratory alkalosis
  4. 4metabolic alkalosis
2.Easy
pH7.357.457.52PaCO₂mmHg354552HCO₃⁻mmol/L222641respiratorymetabolicacidosisalkalosis

A practice arterial blood gas shows pH 7.52, PaCO₂ 52 mmHg (6.9 kPa) and HCO₃⁻ 41 mmol/L. Which primary disorder is it? Click the cell in the grid.

pH 7.52PaCO₂ 52 mmHg (6.9 kPa)HCO₃⁻ 41 mmol/L
  1. 1respiratory acidosis
  2. 2metabolic acidosis
  3. 3respiratory alkalosis
  4. 4metabolic alkalosis
3.Medium

A practice gas shows PaCO₂ 69 mmHg (9.2 kPa). Use the rule that in acute respiratory acidosis HCO₃⁻ rises by 1 mmol/L for every 10 mmHg that PaCO₂ is above 40, starting from HCO₃⁻ 24 mmol/L, to find the expected HCO₃⁻.

PaCO₂ 69 mmHg (9.2 kPa)baseline: 40 mmHg, 24 mmol/L
HCO₃⁻ = mmol/L
4.Medium
pH7.357.457.54PaCO₂mmHg354542HCO₃⁻mmol/L222635uncompensatedpartially compensatedfully compensated

A practice arterial blood gas shows pH 7.54, PaCO₂ 42 mmHg (5.6 kPa) and HCO₃⁻ 35 mmol/L. The primary disorder is metabolic alkalosis. How far is it compensated? Click your answer.

pH 7.54PaCO₂ 42 mmHg (5.6 kPa)HCO₃⁻ 35 mmol/L
  1. 1uncompensated
  2. 2partially compensated
  3. 3fully compensated
5.Hard

At sea level, a practice gas taken on 40% oxygen shows PaO₂ 56 mmHg (7.5 kPa) and PaCO₂ 37 mmHg (4.9 kPa). Use PAO₂ = FiO₂·(760 − 47) − PaCO₂/0.8 to find the A–a gradient.

FiO₂ 40%PaO₂ 56 mmHg (7.5 kPa)PaCO₂ 37 mmHg (4.9 kPa)
A–a gradient = mmHg
6.Hard

A practice gas shows a metabolic alkalosis with HCO₃⁻ 34 mmol/L. Use expected PaCO₂ = 0.7·HCO₃⁻ + 21 to find the expected PaCO₂.

HCO₃⁻ 34 mmol/L
PaCO₂ = mmHg

Answer key

  1. 1. respiratory acidosis
  2. 2. metabolic alkalosis
  3. 3. HCO₃⁻ = 26.9 mmol/L
  4. 4. uncompensated
  5. 5. A–a gradient = 182.9 mmHg
  6. 6. PaCO₂ = 44.8 mmHg

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