A method for monitoring arterial blood gas and acid/base state during prolonged environmental studies
Leitch, D.R.; Smith, D.J.
Aviation Space and Environmental Medicine 54(8): 741-743
1983
ISSN/ISBN: 0095-6562 PMID: 6626084 Document Number: 197237
The use of ear lobe arterialized capillary blood for monitoring blood gas tension and acid-base state is described. The method was validated against simultaneously taken arterial blood samples and separately against nasal end-tidal (ET) PCO2 and found to be an effective alternative to arterial puncture. Incidental observations showed that breathing through a mouthpiece caused the subjects to hypoventilate, as did the act of blood sampling with most subjects. Nasal ET gas monitoring was found to have less effect on a subject's breathing pattern and was used as the standard against which the effects of the other techniques were judged.