PEDIATRICS Vol. 47 No. 5 May 1971, pp. 880-885
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MUSCLE SURFACE pH: A NEW PARAMETER IN THE MONITORING OF THE CRITICALLY ILL CHILD

Robert M. Filler M.D.1 and John B. Das M.D.1

1 Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital Medical Center, and Harvard Medical School, Boston

In three severely ill infants, muscle surface pH was recorded continuously with a new miniaturized pH electrode for periods up to 100 hours.

The clinical findings correlate with experimental results and indicate that muscle pH is a reflection of both arterial pH and the adequacy of tissue perfusion. Since muscle pH changes often precede changes in vital signs and arterial pH, muscle pH monitoring may provide the earliest warning of a deteriorating clinical situation. Although the present clinical experience is small, the findings appear to justify further trials with this method of monitoring sick infants.

Submitted on November 12, 1970
Accepted on December 22, 1970