Blood Gas Analysis (laboratory course)

 

Objectives

After participation in this course, the student is able to:

1. Understand and describe the physical, mathematical or computational principles underlying the chosen tasks.

2. Perform independent measurements or computations using the methods employed during the execution of the chosen tasks.

Description

The Blood Gas Analysis Lab Course is offered together with Biomedical Engineering and Medical Physics (BEMP) Lab Course that involves completing a selection of tasks offered and supervised by the experimental and theoretical research groups participating in the Quantum Science & Technology (QST) Master’s program. This course offers opportunities for gaining some familiarity with the research interests of the associated research groups, thus facilitating future decisions regarding choices of specialization or topics for Master's theses.

In this particular lab course, the students will learn about the blood gas analysis (BGA), also known as arterial blood gas (ABG) test, which is one of most important and commonly used tests performed in the point-of-care settings to assess the health of the patients’ lungs and kidneys. The test is used to quantify concentration of different gases, i.e. oxygen and carbon dioxide, metabolites, i.e. Glucose, Lactate, and electrolytes, i.e. Na+, K+, Ca++, Cl-, in the blood. A parallel measurement of the pH level and concentration of electrolytes and Hemoglobin (tHb, HHb, O₂Hb, sO₂, COHb, MetHb) in the blood can help in diagnosis of diseases such as the pulmonary or metabolic acidosis or alkalosis, anemia, etc. Such analysis of patient’s blood is vital for disease diagnostics in the point-of-care settings.

 

Prerequisites

No prerequisites beyond the requirements for the Master’s program in Quantum Science and Technology.

Teaching and learning methods

This course will give you insights into the state-of-the-art point-of-care blood gas analyzer, which in our case is Siemens RapidPoint® 500 Blood Gas System. In a first step, you will get to know the components of the system and the importance of measuring different constituents dissolved in the blood. You will read and understand the basics of blood gas analysis before the experimental tasks. For example, you will learn the correlation between partial pressure and concentration of a gas in the blood, types of hemoglobin molecules and their role in gas transportation thought the body, different electrolytes present in the bold and their importance in keeping one healthy, etc. Once the basics of BGA are clear, you will learn to operate the RapidPoint® 500 Blood Gas System to achieve results for different types of samples. You will perform first blood gas analysis, collect data for real samples, and analyze the data to make sense of the results that should lead to a proper diagnosis of a patient health condition. You will test how the exposure of blood samples to atmospheric air alters the contents of blood gases and affects the results. You will make note of important consideration during the sample collection and experimentation to avoid inconsistencies.

Introductory material will be made available in the form of notes or references to pertinent books or publications. Supplementary material will offer guidance for executing experimental or theoretical tasks. Supervisors will help where needed. Some tasks can be performed only individually, others also in groups of two or three students.

Most tasks involve four parts:

(i) Preparation – studying introductory material.

(ii) Execution – performing an experimental or theoretical task.

(iii) Report – summarizing the main methods and results in writing.

(iv) Discussion – answering questions posed by an examiner.

 

Presence: 60 hrs, Self study: 120 hrs, Total workload: 180 hrs (6 credits)

Media

Blackboard, presentations (slides), and/or handouts.

Literature

A set of introductory and supplementary notes will be made available, including references to relevant books and publications.

Examination

The module is examined by a laboratory assignment in the form of a pass/fail requirement consisting of several theoretical and experimental tasks.

There are four parts to the examination:

(i) Preparation (insufficiently prepared participants may be rejected due to safety reasons).

(ii) Execution (20 %).

(iii) Report (5-10 pages, 60 %).

(iv) Presentation and Discussion (duration: 15 minutes, 20 %).