An adolescent who is brought to the emergency department (ED) with a fever and persistent lower right quadrant abdominal pain is anxious, fearful, and hyperventilating. The nurse anticipates the client developing which acid-base imbalance?

A. Respiratory acidosis. Respiratory acidosis occurs when there is hypoventilation, leading to an accumulation of carbon dioxide and increased acidity in the blood. Hyperventilation, as described in the scenario, would not lead to respiratory acidosis. B. Respiratory alkalosis. Hyperventilation leads to respiratory alkalosis by blowing off excessive carbon dioxide, resulting in decreased levels of carbonic acid and increased blood pH. C. Metabolic acidosis. Metabolic acidosis results from an accumulation of acids or loss of bicarbonate ions. The scenario does not indicate factors leading to metabolic acidosis. D. Metabolic alkalosis. Metabolic alkalosis occurs due to excessive loss of acids or increased bicarbonate levels, neither of which is suggested in the scenario.