Acid-base disorders case study

It is important to realize that the serum HCO, concentration may be affected by the presence of unmeasured endogenous acids (lactic acidosis or ketoacidosis). Bicarbonate will attempt to buffer these acids, resulting in a 1 mEq loss of serum HCO, for each 1 mEq of acid titrated. Because the cation side of the equation is not affected by this transaction, the loss of serum HC03 results in an increase in the calculated anion gap. Identification of an increased anion gap is very important for identifying the etiology of the acid-base disorder. The concept of the increased anion gap will be applied later in the case studies section. 

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