An arterial blood gas is performed to measure oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, as well as the acid-base balance in the arterial circulation. The radial artery site is commonly used to obtain a sample, as it is superficial and easily accessible. The accurate determination of blood gas and acid base status is an extremely important procedure in the clinical management of patients, and must be performed correctly to minimise erroneous results. These measurements give us vital information concerning the partial pressure of oxygen being supplied to tissues; the level of alveolar ventilation; the efficiency of gas exchange and the general metabolic state of the body. This can help us to determine the severity of a condition and monitor the progress of treatments, such as the provision of supplemental oxygen.<\/p>\n
Once you have watched this video, why not attempt the multiple choice quiz to test your knowledge?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
An arterial blood gas is performed to measure oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, as well as the acid-base balance in the arterial circulation. The radial artery site is commonly used to obtain a sample, as it is superficial and easily accessible. The accurate determination of blood gas and acid base status is an extremely important […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tomorrows-clinicians","category-uncategorized","entry"],"youtubeVideo":"471400643\/3df8c8e989","question1":"Which of the following does arterial blood gas NOT measure?","answers1":" pH| PaO2\r\n| PaCO2\r\n| Peak Expiratory Flow","correctAnswer1":"3","correctAnswerText1":"Peak Expiratory Flow is measured by a peak flow meter","question2":"What must you check of before commencing performing an arterial blood gas sample?","answers2":" If the patient is on supplementary oxygen therapy\r\n| If the patient is on beta-blockers\r\n| If the patient is on simvastatin\r\n| If the patient is on metformin","correctAnswer2":"0","correctAnswerText2":"You must check if the patient is on supplementary oxygen therapy as this may affect the interpretation of the results","question3":"The Blood Gas Sampling kit does NOT contain which item?","answers3":"Heparinised self-venting syringe\r\n| Bung stopper\r\n| Closing cap\/air expeller\r\n| Gauze","correctAnswerText3":"The Blood Gas Sampling kits do not contain any gauze which is required in the procedure","correctAnswer3":"3","question4":"What must you ensure that you have access to before starting the procedure?","answers4":"A working blood gas analyser\r\n| A centrifuge\r\n| A refrigerator\r\n| An incubator","correctAnswer4":"0","correctAnswerText4":"You must have ready access to a blood gas analyser as the sample must be analysed immediately. Check where these machines are located in your trust.","question5":"Which site can you NOT take an arterial blood gas sample?","answers5":"Radial artery\r\n| Brachial artery \r\n| Femoral artery\r\n| Carotid artery","correctAnswer5":"3","correctAnswerText5":"","question6":"What does the Allen\u2019s test comprise of?","answers6":" By slightly elevating the patient\u2019s hand and simultaneously\u00a0occlude the radial and ulnar arteries. Ask the patient to clench their fist for 20 seconds and open the hand release the pressure from the ulnar artery and check the capillary refill time which should be under 3 seconds. \r\n| By slightly elevating the patient\u2019s hand and\u00a0simultaneously\u00a0occlude the radial and ulnar arteries. Ask the patient to clench their fist for 20 seconds and then open the hand. Once blanching of the palm is seen, release the pressure from the ulnar artery. The hand should return to its normal colour within 7 seconds.\r\n| By slightly elevating the patient\u2019s hand and\u00a0simultaneously\u00a0occlude the radial and ulnar arteries. Ask the patient to clench their fist for 20 seconds and then open the hand. Once blanching of the palm is seen, release the pressure from the ulnar artery. The hand should return to its normal colour immediately.\r\n| By checking the ulnar pulse with the radial artery occluded.","correctAnswer6":"1","correctAnswerText6":"The Allen's test is used to check collateral circulation to the hand provided by the ulnar artery to the palmar arch.","question7":"What angle should you insert the needle into the maximum pulsation point?","answers7":"10 \u2013 20 degrees\r\n| 15 \u2013 30 degrees\r\n| 30 \u2013 50 degrees\r\n| 60 \u2013 80 degrees\r\n","correctAnswer7":"2","correctAnswerText7":"You should insert the needle smoothly and steadily at an angle of 30 -50 degrees whilst gently leaning your hand into the palm of the patient\u2019s hand.","question8":"After collecting the sample, how long should you apply pressure at the puncture site?","answers8":"1 minute\r\n| 3 minutes\r\n| 5 minutes\r\n| 7 minutes","correctAnswer8":"2","correctAnswerText8":"After taking the sample, apply pressure at the puncture site using gauze to prevent haematoma formation.","question9":"What should you do after obtaining the sample?","answers9":"Expel any air from the syringe\r\n| Put the syringe on ice\r\n| Gently shake the syringe\r\n| Put the syringe into an incubator ","correctAnswer9":"0","correctAnswerText9":"Air must be expelled from the syringe before attaching it to the blood gas analyser otherwise the analyser may return an \u2018error\u2019 reading.","question10":"What must you do at the end of the procedure?","answers10":" Re-position the patient\r\n| Check that the puncture site is not bleeding\r\n| Document the results in the patient\u2019s notes\r\n| All of the above","correctAnswer10":"3","correctAnswerText10":"Also ensure that all waste material has been appropriately disposed.","question11":"","answers11":"","correctAnswer11":"","correctAnswerText11":"","question12":"","answers12":"","correctAnswer12":"","correctAnswerText12":"","question13":"","answers13":"","correctAnswer13":"","correctAnswerText13":"","question14":"","answers14":"","correctAnswer14":"","correctAnswerText14":"","question15":"","answers15":"","correctAnswer15":"","correctAnswerText15":"","icon":"radial-arterial-blood-gas","parentId":"","recapId":"406","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":521,"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25\/revisions\/521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vapp.rguc.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}