Page 98 - Clinical Biochemistry

Chapter 9:

Acid-Base Balance
Outlines:

• Buffer system
• Respiratory Regulation of Acid-Base Balance
• Renal Regulation of Acid-Base Balance
• Blood Gas Test

Acid-Base Balance

• Your blood needs the right balance of acidic and basic (alkaline) compounds to function
properly. This is called the acid-base balance. Your kidneys and lungs work to maintain the
acid-base balance. Even slight variations from the normal range can have significant effects
on your vital organs.

• When the blood is too acidic, it’s called acidosis.

• When your blood is too alkaline, it is called alkalosis.

Buffer system:

• The buffer systems in the human body are extremely efficient, and different systems work
at different rates.

• It takes only seconds for the chemical buffers in the blood to make adjustments to pH. The
respiratory tract can adjust the blood pH upward in minutes by exhaling CO2 from the
body.

• The renal system can also adjust blood pH through the excretion of hydrogen ions (H+) and
the conservation of bicarbonate, but this process takes hours to days to have an effect.

It consists of:

A) Phosphate buffer B) Protein buffer
C) Hemoglobin buffer D) Bicarbonate-Carbonic Acid Buffer