Abstract
Objective
To assess the role of blood gas analysis as an auxiliary tool for detecting and predicting the progression of COVID-19 in patients.
Research Methodology/Design
A consecutive cohort study was conducted of 106 patients diagnosed with the novel coronavirus. Patients were divided into two groups based on age and the course of the disease (mild to moderate and severe). Blood gas analysis parameters were measured for all participants and results were compared between groups.
Setting
This study was conducted in the Department of Laboratory Medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Main Outcome Measures
Arterial/alveolar oxygen partial pressure ratio, reduced hemoglobin fraction, sodium ion, lactic acid, oxygen saturation, oxygen partial pressure, and oxyhemoglobin fraction.
Results
Findings indicated statistically significant differences between the two groups in the measured parameters.
Conclusion
Blood gas analysis has the potential to more accurately assess the progression of COVID-19 in elderly patients, specifically related to respiratory and acid-base balance issues.
Implications for Clinical Practice
This study underscores the importance for bedside nurses to pay close attention to acid-base balance, lung ventilation/ventilation function, and hypoxia status in elderly critically ill patients with COVID-19, in order to more effectively diagnose and predict the progression of the disease.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
