A blood test is done to detect and prevent diseases in the early stages. The presence of chlorine in tissues is a significant marker of medical diagnostics. Blood biochemistry is very important to determine the general condition of the patient. Often prescribed analysis for the level of chlorides in the blood. What do its results mean? What to do if gyrechloremia or hypochloremia is detected?
Norms
Chlorine is a component that is part of not only gastric juice, but also interstitial fluid. This element is presented in the form of independent ions, negatively charged (anions). Their functions are different, but the main one is to maintain the hydrostatic effect and the acid balance in the norm. Chlorine enters the body with food. The main storage organ is the skin, in the cells of which more than 50% of the arriving chlorine is stored. During the normal functioning of the human body, the change in the concentration of chlorides is due to the maintenanceneutral environment.
Normal saturation of chloride in the blood of adults is 98-107 mmol per liter. The constant preservation of the water-s alt balance is the main condition for the normal functioning of the body, so the composition of the blood must be stable. A continuous increase or decrease in the proportion of chlorine indicates the presence of pathology.
Indications for analysis
The biochemistry object is 5-10 milliliters of blood (sample taken on an empty stomach from a vein).
Analysis is prescribed for the following purposes:
- Assess acid and electrolyte balance.
- Diagnose diseases of the kidneys and liver, accompanied by pathologies of metabolism, convulsive conditions and pathologies of consciousness.
- Control fluid-s alt balance in patients undergoing long-term fluid therapy.
- Find out indicators for diseases of an infectious and non-infectious nature, accompanied by prolonged diarrhea and nausea.
The number of chlorides is evaluated in combination with the presence of sodium and potassium cations. The difference between the amount of sodium present (as the main blood cation) and the amount of chlorine and bicarbonate present is called the anion gap. This indicator, as a rule, is 8-16 mmol / l, and its excess indicates a severe non-observance of the acid-base balance.
Hyperchloremia
Elevated blood chloride (hyperchloremia) is an abnormality in which there is an excess of chlorine.
For a person there may beserious consequences if he used 15 grams of chlorine at a time. This is a serious indicator, since the component is toxic. It destroys he althy cells of the body, as a result, he alth disorders begin. If you do not take action, the person is diagnosed with dehydration. The following symptoms may indicate an increase in blood chlorine:
- Fluid retention.
- High BP.
- Irregular heart rate.
- Muscle weakness.
- Tingling in muscles, numbness.
- Convulsions.
Causes of high chlorine found in blood
This phenomenon is observed in those who consume foods or medicines that contain an increased amount of this substance. Doctors justified that taking 15 g of chlorine at a time can cause intestinal infections, since this component is toxic.
There are two factors by which you can determine whether blood chloride is elevated or not:
- Absolute.
- Relative.
The causes of the pathology are caused by dysfunction of the urinary and digestive systems. If the patient suffers from nephritis or nephrosis, then these pathologies lead to a delay in the tissues of fluid and s alts, as a result of which they begin to accumulate over time.
The concentration of chlorine is growing. Other reasons:
- High blood sodium levels.
- Malnutrition, fasting diets.
- Increased intake of s alty foods.
- Dehydration.
- Diabetes mellitus.
- Heart disease.
- Kidney failure.
- Treatment with certain medications.
Hypochloremia
The normal level of sodium chloride in the blood is approximately 98-107 mmol per liter. Dehydration of the body is dangerous by the formation of blood clots inside the vessels. Decreased chlorides in the blood (hypochloremia) can be traced at osmotic pressure in the presence of a violation of the alkaline-acid balance in humans. An insufficient amount of chlorides in the blood often appears in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (gastritis, ulcers, and others).
Macronutrient deficiency causes these symptoms:
- Vomiting.
- Excessive sweating.
- Brittle hair, nails and teeth.
- Constipation.
- Edema
- Metabolic disorders.
- High BP.
Also, with a lack of chlorine, muscle weakness with convulsive movements can be traced, there is a violation of breathing, and problems with digestion appear. Therefore, the body directly orients the chlorides in the blood in the necessary direction to normalize well-being.
Causes and features of low chloride levels
There are no reliable data on the signs of a lack of chlorine in humans, because laboratory studies were carried out only on rats.
The following signs may indicate a lack of chlorine:
- Unconditional exhaustion until anorexia develops.
- Rare desire to defecate.
- Hair loss, and sometimes even teeth.
- Riseswelling.
- Severe jump in blood pressure up to skeptically high levels (although it all depends on the characteristics of the body and its interaction with a lack of chlorine).
- Formation of alkalosis.
If a person began to lose weight very rapidly for no apparent reason, or if the hair became brittle, it would not be superfluous to visit a clinic to do a blood test and clarify the quantitative indicator of this microelement in the body.
Diagnosis
Determination of chlorides in the blood is made by a blood test. It is taken from a vein on an empty stomach. The norm of chlorides in the blood ranges from 98 to 107 mmol / liter.
Often, additional examinations of the condition of the kidneys and liver are required.
If the patient is taking medications containing chlorine s alts, such therapy should be interrupted before analysis. The time for how much you need to do this is determined by the period of excretion of the components of the drug from the body, which is indicated in the instructions for them. Also, a day before taking a blood test for chlorides, foods with a high content of these elements should be excluded from the diet.
The table below shows how much chloride is allowed to enter the body per day:
Deviations in one direction or another from the marked limits will affect the state of he alth.
Treatment to be given to the patient
In order to prevent excess of the norm of chlorides, the balance of water consumption should be observed. Adultsyou should drink about 2.5 liters of pure water per day. For children under 5 years old, this figure is 500 ml, and for teenagers - 1 liter. Of course, this is an average. During the summer and for people working in hot shops (bakeries, steelworkers, blacksmiths, etc.), the norm should be higher.
With an increased content of chlorides, the patient is prescribed:
- Drugs against nausea, vomiting, diarrhea.
- Increased water intake (up to 3 liters per day).
- Alcohol and caffeine ban.
- Treatment of underlying diseases (in diabetes mellitus control of blood glucose).
- If the patient is in serious condition, they are prescribed intravenous fluids.
- Diet.
Hypochloremia is treated with drugs containing sodium chloride. In a serious condition of the patient, they are administered intravenously (using a dropper). A diet is mandatory, which should include foods with a high content of chlorides.
Prevention
To avoid high or low levels of chlorides in the blood, you need to stop consuming high amounts of s alt, drink at least 2.5 liters of pure non-carbonated water daily, treat diseases of internal organs and diabetes on time, and be examined on time. Here is a list of foods high in chlorides:
- Olives.
- Celery.
- Tomatoes.
- Salads of different varieties.
- Sausages, ham.
- Rye.
- Fast food food.
- Cheese.
- Peas.
- Buckwheat.
- Chicken eggs.
- Fig.
- Some types of fish (mackerel, flounder, hake, capelin, tuna, crucian carp.
Based on this list, you can create the right daily menu for yourself.
