Electrolyte Balance Flashcards
6 cards from real CCHT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Electrolyte Balance flashcards as text
What is the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and calcium/phosphorus imbalance in ESRD?
Answer: Vitamin D deficiency impairs intestinal calcium absorption, promoting hypocalcemia and secondary hyperparathyroidism
The kidneys activate vitamin D, and in ESRD, this activation fails, reducing intestinal calcium absorption and triggering secondary hyperparathyroidism.
Which laboratory value most directly reflects a patient's dialysis adequacy and should guide treatment adjustments?
Answer: Kt/V (urea clearance index)
Kt/V is the standard measure of dialysis adequacy, reflecting the volume of blood cleared of urea relative to the patient's body water volume.
A patient's serum sodium is 128 mEq/L before dialysis. The dialysate sodium is 138 mEq/L. What is the expected effect on sodium balance?
Answer: Sodium will be added to the blood from dialysate, raising serum sodium toward normal
With dialysate sodium (138) higher than serum sodium (128), diffusion moves sodium from dialysate into blood, correcting hyponatremia.
What happens to glucose levels in diabetic dialysis patients during a treatment using standard glucose-containing dialysate (200 mg/dL glucose)?
Answer: Blood glucose may increase as glucose diffuses from dialysate to blood if serum glucose is below dialysate level
If the patient's blood glucose is lower than dialysate glucose (200 mg/dL), glucose will diffuse from the dialysate into the blood, potentially raising blood glucose.
Which electrolyte imbalance is most likely to cause a dialysis patient to experience tetany (involuntary muscle contractions)?
Answer: Hypocalcemia
Hypocalcemia causes increased neuromuscular excitability, leading to tetany, muscle spasms, and potentially seizures.
What is the recommended target pre-dialysis serum potassium range for a stable chronic hemodialysis patient?
Answer: 3.5 to 5.5 mEq/L
The target pre-dialysis potassium for stable hemodialysis patients is 3.5 to 5.5 mEq/L, balancing the risk of hyper- and hypokalemia.