Anatomic deadspace equals 1 mL per pound of body weight. If a patient weighs 180 pounds, what is the deadspace in milliliters?

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Multiple Choice

Anatomic deadspace equals 1 mL per pound of body weight. If a patient weighs 180 pounds, what is the deadspace in milliliters?

Anatomic dead space is the volume of air in the conducting airways where no gas exchange occurs. A common quick estimate is about 1 mL of dead space per pound of body weight (roughly 2.2 mL per kg). Multiply the weight by this factor: 180 lb × 1 mL/lb = 180 mL. So the deadspace is 180 mL. The other values would correspond to different per-pound factors (0.5 mL/lb gives 90 mL, 2 mL/lb gives 360 mL, 3 mL/lb gives 540 mL), which aren’t used in this question.

Anatomic dead space is the volume of air in the conducting airways where no gas exchange occurs. A common quick estimate is about 1 mL of dead space per pound of body weight (roughly 2.2 mL per kg). Multiply the weight by this factor: 180 lb × 1 mL/lb = 180 mL. So the deadspace is 180 mL. The other values would correspond to different per-pound factors (0.5 mL/lb gives 90 mL, 2 mL/lb gives 360 mL, 3 mL/lb gives 540 mL), which aren’t used in this question.

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