Breathing and the regulation of oxygen and carbon dioxide would not be possible without our lungs. The lungs also aid white blood cells in fighting against infectious agents; mucus, a substance produced in the lungs, traps infectious agents and exits the lungs when ones coughs, after enough accumulation of harmful agents such as bacteria and viruses. The pH levels --- or balance between acid and base chemicals --- of the lungs must remain constant to ensure proper detoxification.
Significance
According to MedlinePlus, an online service of the National Institutes of Health, the pH level of healthy lungs is between 7.38 and 7.42 at sea level, roughly the same as that of the body and blood that travels through it. Alkalosis occurs if the pH level exceeds 7.42 --- meaning there is an excess of base in body fluids --- and is caused by low carbon-dioxide levels in the blood, the University of Maryland Medical Center explains. Acidosis occurs if the pH level is lower than 7.38 --- meaning there is an excess of acid in body fluids --- and is caused by excessive carbon-dioxide levels in the blood, MedlinePlus notes.
Reasons for Abnormal pH levels
Abnormal pH levels can occur for several reasons.
In respiratory acidosis, chest deformities such as kyphosis, the irregular curvature of the spine, chest injuries, chest muscle weakness, and overuse of sedative drugs cause the acidic change, MedlinePlus explains.
Other chronic conditions include metabolic acidosis in which the kidneys cannot remove the excess acid, causing diabetic acidosis, the build-up of ketone bodies; hyperchloremic acidosis, which results from excessive losses of sodium bicarbonate; and lactic acidosis, which results from a build-up of lactic acid caused by alcohol, cancer, excessive exercise, low blood sugar levels and seizures.
In respiratory alkalosis, high fevers, high altitude, a lack of oxygen, liver disease, and lung disease causing hyperventilation cause the basic change.
Other chronic conditions include metabolic alkalosis, in which too much bicarbonate is present in the blood; hypochloremic alkalosis, which there is a severe loss of chloride and could lead to prolonged vomiting; and hypokalemic alkalosis, in which the kidneys respond to an extreme lack or loss of potassium, the University of Maryland Medical Center reports.
Lung Function
The lungs carry the oxygen we breathe through the trachea, or windpipe, which branches into two main tubes that make up the left and right lung, respectively. These tubes further branch into 100,000 smaller tubes, bronchi and bronchioles, and more than 300 million air sacs, or alveoli, Dr. Dennis Doherty, co-chairman of the National Lung Health Education Program and Chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Kentucky Medical Center, writes for the website of the American Association for Respiratory Care.
Testing for Healthy pH Levels
A blood-gas analysis test can be performed to determine the body's pH level; your physician will remove blood from an artery in the arm or groin, MedlinePlus explains. The procedure measures the partial pressures of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood, as well as oxygen content, oxygen saturation and bicarbonate content. The test is performed two different ways: with oxygen and without oxygen. If the patient receives oxygen, oxygen levels must remain the same for 20 minutes before the test; if the patient does not receive oxygen, oxygen gas must be turned off 20 minutes before the test. Patients should breathe normally during the test.
Warning
Some risks of taking a blood gas test, or that may occur after taking such a test, involve delayed or active bleeding or bruising at the puncture site, blood flow problems, fainting or feeling light-headed, the accumulation of blood under the skin, or infection, MedlinePlus cautions. Notify your physician if you are taking any blood thinners such as aspirin, or notice any bleeding, bruising, numbness, tingling, or change of skin color at the puncture site after the procedure.
