Lab Values

1. Are any of the lab values in Table 1 out of normal range? Are they too high or too low? Her serum creatinine is high. Creatinine is completely filtered from the blood (not as well of a marker for kidney function as inulin because some is secreted, but still a good marker of kidney function) and excreted in urine so for her to have more than 0.6-1.2mg/dL in her blood is not normal. Her blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels are also very high. They should only be around 7-18 mg/dL. Her serum calcium is also high; it should only range from 8.4-10.2mg/dL. Her sodium levels are low (normally 135-145 mg/dL). Her potassium is also low (should be anywhere from 3.5-5.0 mEq/L). Her bicarbonate is very high; it should only be in the range of 22-28 mEq/L. Her pH is also high (alkaline); it should be in the range of 7.38-7.42. (“Normal Lab Values”, n.d.). The amount of potassium found in the urine can vary widely depending on the diet of the patient (Lee, 2013). So it in unknown as to whether her urinary potassium levels are within the normal range.
The creatinine value is important (but only if the amount she was given is known); since creatinine is completely cleared from the kidneys it is a good indicator as to how well her kidneys are filtering the blood. The BUN levels are also helpful in understanding how her kidneys are
Bladen has alkalosis. For whatever reason her bicarbonate amounts are much too high which could be the reason why her blood is alkaline. She has been vomiting which could be why the amount of hydrogen ions in her body have decreased in number. The vomiting can also cause her blood volume to decrease which results in aldosterone being secreted. Aldosterone causes sodium and water reabsorption to increase, but also bicarbonate absorption to increase and potassium to also be reabsorbed, and hydrogen to be secreted. Because of the already low levels of hydrogen the hydrogen – potassium ATPase should move hydrogen into the blood and potassium