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[Practical diagnostics of acid-base disorders: part I: differentiation between respiratory and metabolic
P Deetjen1, M Lichtwarck-Aschoff
1Klinik für Anästhesiologie und Operative Intensivmedizin, Klinikum Augsburg, Augsburg, Deutschland. philipp.deetjen@klinikum-augsburg.de
Abstract:
The first part of this overview on diagnostic tools for acid-base disorders focuses on basic knowledge for distinguishing between respiratory and metabolic causes of a particular disturbance. Rather than taking sides in the great transatlantic or traditional-modern debate on the best theoretical model for understanding acid-base physiology, this article tries to extract what is most relevant for everyday clinical practice from the three schools involved in these keen debates: the Copenhagen, the Boston and the Stewart schools. Each school is particularly strong in a specific diagnostic or therapeutic field. Appreciating these various strengths a unifying, simplified algorithm together with an acid-base calculator will be discussed.
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