Author Topic: Blood oxygen.  (Read 3896 times)

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: Blood oxygen.
« Reply #25 on: 05 July, 2020, 11:25:55 am »
Glucose will only spill into the urine at levels above the 'renal threshold', which is higher than acceptable. This is why blood glucose is measured.

Brits measure blood glucose in mmol/litre while Americans quote mg/dl. 180mg/dl = 10mmol/l.

Can't fathom why Brits have to use mmol.  Wiki:

Quote
A mole of a substance or a mole of particles is defined as exactly 6.02214076×1023 particles, which may be atoms, molecules, ions, or electrons. In short, for particles 1 mol = 6.02214076×1023

Fairly trips off the tongue, doesn't it?  While a milligramme is 1/1000 grammes.  180 mg/dL means you have 18 grammes/litre of glucose in your blood, about the same sugar load as half-a-dozen ripe cherries.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Blood oxygen.
« Reply #26 on: 05 July, 2020, 04:43:23 pm »
Fairly trips off the tongue, doesn't it?  While a milligramme is 1/1000 grammes.  180 mg/dL means you have 18 grammes/litre of glucose in your blood, about the same sugar load as half-a-dozen ripe cherries.

180mg/dl = 1.8 grams per litre, NOT 18 grams per litre.

The reason mol/mmol are used is that properties that vary as the number of particles can be compared, rather than weight.
If, for example, you wish to swap equivalent quantities of sodium for potassium, you'll need 23 for sodium for 39 of potassium.

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: Blood oxygen.
« Reply #27 on: 05 July, 2020, 05:09:50 pm »
Fairly trips off the tongue, doesn't it?  While a milligramme is 1/1000 grammes.  180 mg/dL means you have 18 grammes/litre of glucose in your blood, about the same sugar load as half-a-dozen ripe cherries.

180mg/dl = 1.8 grams per litre, NOT 18 grams per litre.

Right enough, you may cringe at my arithmetic.

Quote
The reason mol/mmol are used is that properties that vary as the number of particles can be compared, rather than weight.
If, for example, you wish to swap equivalent quantities of sodium for potassium, you'll need 23 for sodium for 39 of potassium.

OK. Not very informative for the patient, though.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Re: Blood oxygen.
« Reply #28 on: 05 July, 2020, 05:28:23 pm »
Fairly trips off the tongue, doesn't it?  While a milligramme is 1/1000 grammes.  180 mg/dL means you have 18 grammes/litre of glucose in your blood, about the same sugar load as half-a-dozen ripe cherries.

180mg/dl = 1.8 grams per litre, NOT 18 grams per litre.

Right enough, you may cringe at my arithmetic.

Quote
The reason mol/mmol are used is that properties that vary as the number of particles can be compared, rather than weight.
If, for example, you wish to swap equivalent quantities of sodium for potassium, you'll need 23 for sodium for 39 of potassium.

OK. Not very informative for the patient, though.

To be fair, without context neither is g/l - 1.8 g/l doesn’t sound much, but it’s plenty Of sugar in your blood to  do proper long term damage.

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Blood oxygen.
« Reply #29 on: 05 July, 2020, 06:17:37 pm »
Comparing mmol/l with mg/l is like comparing the number of cats you have with the weight of cat you must feed.

My cats weigh 4kg and 7kg so I have 11kg of cat.
I have 2 cats.

Counting the cats can be more useful...

Re: Blood oxygen.
« Reply #30 on: 05 July, 2020, 06:43:11 pm »
Comparing mmol/l with mg/l is like comparing the number of cats you have with the weight of cat you must feed.

My cats weigh 4kg and 7kg so I have 11kg of cat.
I have 2 cats.

Counting the cats can be more useful...
Good way of putting it.
I was working in pathology when we switched units from the old way (pretty much what the mericans use) to SI units (used by most of the rest of the world) and it has opened up a lot of new ways of calculating stuff (renal function indicators, osmolality and colloid pressure for example) which are clinically important but opaque to patients.
It didn't make sense in ~1975, but no one would go back.
Too many angry people - breathe & relax.