The acidifying effect of short-term (6-hr) infusion of intralipid was studied in 12 low-birth-weight infants by following the changes in acidbase status and urinary H+ excretion pattern. The infants received 5% or 10% glucose as a base-line calorie supply. Intravenous fat emulsion induced a transient metabolic acidosis. The slightly affected pH and BE recovered in the first two hours following Intralipi  d infusion. Parallel to the recovery, urinary net acid excretion increased. NH+4 excretion responded rapidly, titratable acid showed a progressively increasing response and was the major component of net acid excretion. As to the mechanism involved in the activation of NH+4 production in the kidney, it is suggested that in addition to acidaemia increased fatty acid oxidation might contrbute to stimulation of renal gluconeogenesis and ammoniagenesis.
Acid-Base Equilibrium Ammonia