Respiratory acidosis in the elderly

Respiratory acidosis (exhaled acid) is often caused by CO2 retention. The renal compensation in the acute phase is not significant, and the bicarbonate buffer system does not work. Therefore, acidosis progresses rapidly, and the severity can be reached within ten minutes. And the retained CO2 easily enters the cells, leading to intracellular acidosis. If not corrected in time, the mortality rate is very high. Its main features are elevated plasma PaCO2 and a compensatory increase in HCO3- levels in the chronic phase.