A simple technique for the determination of the ventilatory response to rising arterial CO2 tensions, suitable for patients with neurological disorders.
Patients with neurological disorders may have a reduced ventilatory response to a rising PaCO2. This is often unpredictable and may become apparent only when other complications, e.g. infections (pneumonia), occur or when the patient is subjected to general anaesthesia. This paper described a simple method suitable for screening patients who may have an impaired capacity of eliminating CO2 when stressed. Ventilatory changes were determined during the continuous recording of the CO2 concentration in end-tidal air in 20 healthy subjects, who were breathing first air and then gas mixtures containing 21% O2 and 2.5 or 5% CO2. A prediction interval with 90 and 95% probability limits was constructed for healthy individuals. The normally expected change in minute ventilation per m2 body surface area per change in PACO2 (delta versicle E/m2, l/min/delta PACO2, for this technique is also given.
D000328:Adult; D001158:Arteries; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000097:blood*; D002493:Central Nervous System Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010313:Partial Pressure; D012119:Respiration; D013147:Spirometry / Q000379:methods*
D002245:Carbon Dioxide