All of the following are true about capillary blood gas sampling except:
a. capillary sampling can be used in lieu of direct arterial access in some infants and small children.
b. a capillary sample PO2 provides a fairly close estimate of actual arterial oxygena-tion.
c. clinicians should exercise caution when using capillary samples to guide decisions.
d. properly obtained capillary blood can pro-vide estimates of arterial pH and PCO2 levels.
ANS: B
Sometimes capillary blood gas sampling is used as an alternative to direct arterial access in infants and small children. Properly obtained capillary blood from a well-perfused patient can provide rough estimates of arterial pH and PCO2 levels. However, the capillary PO2 is of no value in es-timating arterial oxygenation. For this reason, direct arterial access is still the preferred approach for assessing gas exchange in infants and small children. Respiratory therapists must exercise ex-treme caution when using capillary blood gases to guide clinical decisions.
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