Fluid and Electrolytes - Introduction

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Introduction to: Fluid and Electrolyte Balance

Fluid and electrolyte balances are necessary for homeostasis.
This presentation and following videos will help you become better aware of how to assist patients in regaining and maintaining homeostasis.
We will also discuss normal and abnormal fluid and electrolyte balances, the factors that contribute to imbalances, types of imbalances, and nursing interventions you can use to correct imbalances.
Part 1 will focus on “fluid balance”
Including: Hypovolemia and hypervolemia

and then Part 2 will cover “electrolyte balance” and look at each electrolyte individually. Each of these will be broken down into bit size videos for better understanding and added to a playlist, so that it is easy to find the next video!

So…let’s get started!

First, we’ll speak to the Importance of Fluid Balance in Our Bodies…
Fluid is a major component of our body. It serves a vital role in our health, and in normal cellular function by serving as a medium for metabolic reactions within the cell.
It also is the transporter of nutrients and waste products, a lubricant, an insulator, and a shock absorber.
Fluid serves as a means of regulating, or maintaining body temperature.
Fluids may enter the body through the food we eat and the beverage we drink.
Fluids leave the body mainly by the elimination process of urine, feces and through the skin.
The amount of water in our bodies declines with age.
For instance, a newborn’s body consists of about 75% fluid, while a healthy adult’s body is composed of 60% fluid.
40% of the body’s water is in the Intercellular space which you will see abbreviated as ICF which stands for Intracellular Fluid (ICF).
The extracellular fluid which you will see abbreviated as (ECF) accounts for 20% of body weight: 14% in the interstitial space, and 5% in the intravascular space.
Transcellular fluid, like the cerebrospinal fluid and fluid contained in other body spaces such as:
Joint space, pleural, peritoneal, and pericardial spaces, makes up the remaining 1% of the total ECF Extracellular Fluid.
Extracellular and intracellular fluids contain solutes, which are: substances dissolved in the body fluid such as:
Dissolved nutrients,
waste products
and
charged particles called ions or electrolytes.

Fluid and electrolytes play a vital role in homeostasis which is – the ability of the body or a cell to seek and maintain a condition of equilibrium or stability within its internal environment when dealing with external changes.
Homeostasis must exist for the cells to function properly.
To maintain homeostasis, fluids move between compartments through selectively permeable membranes by a variety of methods such as:
Diffusion
Active transport
Filtration
and Osmosis,

whenever there is a need for readjustment caused by external stimuli.
The fluid in each compartment has to be stable or be maintained in specific limits because deviation outside these limits creates a fluid imbalance and can result in serious or life-threatening consequences.

Fluid imbalances can either be isotonic or osmolar.
Isotonic imbalance is when water and electrolytes are lost or gained in equal proportion, thus osmolality of the body fluids remains constant.
Osmolar imbalance involves the loss or gain of only water, so that osmolality is altered. The word osmolar means the measure of solute concentration. Solutes include particles like electrolytes.

One thing to know when you are learning fluid and electrolytes:
“Iso” such as Isotonic - the value is considered to have the same solute concentration of blood.
However, when you see:
when you see - Hypo with an O - the value is considered lower than normal
And when you see Hyper with ER - the value is considered to be higher than normal.

For example:
Hyperkalemia - means elevated potassium levels, when compared to normal values
and the opposite hypokalemia means low potassium levels when compared to normal values.
And

[paolaramos]

Hi Caroline! These series came at a perfect time. We are currently studying F&E in my high acuity class. Thank you for the video!

[al-nhadzpharbara]

I'm here because of my Report, Thank you for this video and God bless

[Psychiatrist]

wrong info very misleading: inter and intracellular fluid is not the same. 70% of water is inTRAcellular and 30% is EXTRAcellular( out of this 30%, 80% is inTERcellular and 20% is INTRAvascular). Inter=between, Intra=in

[tinaortiz]

Thanks Caroline, very good video and was easy to understand.

[steffacation]

Thanks for the great video! About to watch the rest of the electrolyte series now :)
Though I have to admit that it super distracting when the words on the screen are moving, it makes them very difficult to read along while you speak.

[shellyidwttw]

BRILLIANT
THANK YOU SO MUCH
THIS IS VERY HELPFUL

[maryclapp]

There's a discrepancy beginning at 1:56 about the percentage of ICF vs ECF. The actual percentages of fluid within the body is ~70% ICF and ~30% ECF (give or take 2/3 ICF and 1/3 ECF).


She says in the video that "40% of the body's water is in the intracellular space." The actual percentage is around 70%. She then says that the ECF accounts for 20% of the body's fluid, but the text says it accounts for 60% of the body's weight.

She seems to be mistaking the percent of body weight for the total percentage of fluid. Here is what I believe she means:

Fluid makes up 60% of the body's weight: 40% of that weight is ICF and 20% is ECF (40% + 20% = 60%).

This means that, if you're only examining the fluid, the breakdown is 2/3 ICF and 1/3 ECF. That really means 66.6% ICF and 33.3% ECF, but they round it, given it's not an exact number.

[nirajmaurya]

its very helpful for me thanks for this videos

[lillytelle]

Thanks Very helpful and so easy to understand!

[vnagubandi]

Did anyone notice the mistake in this video? The hypernatremia definition is stated for hyponatremia. It said hypernatremia is low sodium and again hypernatremia is high sodium. Please correct it by either changing the hyper to hypo or changing the low to high.

[Mizzfm]

I love love love ur videos please can you do One on critical thinking from beginning ( nursing student)

[mbenitez]

I'd appreciate the lack of movement from the words..I have to pause to read

[knicoleyao]

I'm a nursing student who floated in an infusion clinic. I swear I thought I saw your picture at the nursing station. haha

[someone-mndy]

i hope that you talk about cell structure

[adrianmcastro]

thanks for the awesome videos, ive red about fluids and electrolytes on nclex book and it took me a couple of hour just to finish that topic 😂 thank u for making easy, and understandable the concepts of nursing 😊 acid base balance pls? 😇 Godbless 😊

[JT-qmxp]

Too fanciful fonts and movements, wasted too much time just to figure out what the texts were.

[awsfaeq]

very simple way to understand
your explanation is very well and also your are cute

[jeannetteflores]

Love your videos but the moving text was distracting.

[abir]

Im just being anatomy and physiology.  How should I start.

[jbeasto]

Any good recommendations for study material for NCLEX? i failed twice, currently used Kaplan...