Critical Thinking Questions F & E 1. How does electrolyte balance control fluid balance in the body?

? Answer: The fluids in the body are mostly water; water moves from one compartment to another in the body by osmosis. The determining factor for osmotic movement is colloid osmotic pressure, which is determined by electrolyte levels (K+ in the ICF, Na+ levels in the ECF) and proteins. 2. What would happen if water were moved by active transport from one body compartment to another? Answer: First, electrolyte balance would not be as important for water movement (although electrolytes would still be important for membrane potential, etc.). Second, the body would expend huge amounts of energy, because active transport requires energy. Metabolic rate would probably have to increase to handle the additional energy requirement. 3. Do homeostatic mechanisms that adjust the composition of body fluids respond to extracellular fluid (ECF) or intracellular fluid (ICF)? Answer: Homeostatic mechanisms respond to ECF. Blood pressure (baroreceptors) and colloid osmotic pressure (chemoreceptors) monitor conditions in the ECF, and result in neuroendocrine responses that help to maintain homeostasis. 4. Regarding fluid and electrolyte balance, what would be the consequences of a large loss of skin, (e.g., third-degree burns or scraping injuries)? Answer: Any loss of skin increases the loss of water, so dehydration would be a serious problem. In addition, large amounts of tissue destruction result in ICF being released. Because ICF has a high concentration of K+, hyperkalemia also could occur. 5. If a person rapidly drank a liter of distilled water, how would their ICF be affected? Answer: Water would be absorbed into the blood; as a result, the colloid osmotic pressure of the blood would decrease. Water would diffuse out of the blood, resulting in a decreased colloid osmotic pressure in the interstitial and other extracellular body fluids. In turn, water would diffuse from the interstitial fluid into the cells, increasing the volume of ICF. 6. Can you describe the effect that Addison disease (hypoaldosteronism) would have on fluid and electrolyte balance? Answer: Aldosterone increases Na+ and water reabsorption in the kidneys. Decreased aldosterone would increase the amount of Na+ and water in the urine, resulting in the loss of large amounts of water and salt. Dehydration and hypovolemia would be a result. Also, because K+ would be secreted into the kidney tubules at a reduced rate, hyperkalemia would occur. 7. What effect would hyperaldosteronism, as might occur from an adrenal cortex tumor, have on ECF levels of K+ and skeletal muscle contraction? Answer: Hyperaldosteronism would cause increased amounts of K+ to be secreted into the kidney tubules. As a result, the ECF would have decreased amounts of K+, which would cause hyperpolarization of nerve and muscle cell membranes, resulting in muscle weakness and/or paralysis.