NCLEX RN Practice Question # 960

NCLEX Examination.

Practice Question # 960.

Respiratory acidosis

Respiratory acidosis is an acid-base disturbance characterized by excess of CO2 in the blood (hypercapnia), indicated by a PaCO2 greater than 45 mm Hg. It results from reduced alveolar ventilation. It can be acute (from a sudden failure in ventilation) or chronic (as in long-term pulmonary disease).

CAUSES

• Airway obstruction or parenchymal lung disease
• CNS trauma
• Chronic metabolic alkalosis
• Drugs, such as opioids, anesthetics, hypnotics, and sedatives
• Neuromuscular diseases, such as myasthenia gravis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and polio myelitis