Showing posts with label isotonic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label isotonic. Show all posts

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Physiological basis of giving normal saline to a patient with isosmotic dehydration.


o   Dehydration is a decrease in ECF volume due to loss of H2O and solutes such as Na+.

o   In isoosmotic dehydration loss of H2O is equal to the loss of solutes.

o   Loss of isotonic fluid from plasma causes a loss of fluid from interstitium to plasma to maintain hydrostatic balance between the compartments.

o   But there is no change in the osmolality in the ECF compartment because the fluid lost is isotonic.

o   Thus there is no shift of fluid into or out of ICF because there is no change in ECF osmolality.

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