acid-base balance

Introduction

Both the lungs (through expiration of CO2) & the kidneys regulate acid base balance

Normal daily endogenous acid production (excluding CO2) is approximately: 50-70 mmol/24 hours or 1 mmol/kg/day.

In patients with acute renal failure, plasma [HC03-] decreases by approximately 1-2 meq/L/day.

Normal acid-base values:

    pCO2 = 38-42 mm Hg
 [HCO3-] = 24-28 mmol/L
    [H+] = 40 mmol/L

Additional terms

• acid-base disorder
• Henderson-Hasselbalch equation