This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Relationship between hydrogen ion concentration

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

There is a relationship between the extracellular concentrations of hydrogen and potassium because both compete with each other in the exchange with sodium which occurs across most cell membranes (in this instance an ion is pumped into the cell as sodium is pumped out) and in the distal tubule of the kidney (ion pumped into urine and sodium ion absorbed from the urine).

When acidaemia, i.e. high hydrogen ion concentration in the extracellular fluid, there is reduced exchange of potassium across cell membranes and less potassium lost in the urine because of the competition at these sites provided by hydrogen ions. Thus, in the acidotic patient there is a pseudo-hyperkalaemic state that may not reflect the total body potassium. Conversely, in a alkalotic patient, the reverse is true.

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.