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An arterial blood gas (ABG) is a blood test that is performed using blood from an artery.It involves puncturing an artery with a thin needle and syringe and drawing a small volume of blood.he blood can also be drawn from an arterial catheter. Pulse oximetry plus transcutaneous carbon dioxide measurement is an alternative method of obtaining similar information as well. An ABG is a test that measures the arterial oxygen tension (PaO 2), carbon dioxide tension (PaCO 2), and acidity (pH).
4) Now you can finally look at the patientâs ABG values. Check the pH and decide if the value is normal, high, or low. 4a) If the pH is normal, check PaCO 2, and HCO 3 â . If they are both normal, then you patient is fine and you can stop here.But if one or both of these values is abnormal, then continue to step 5.BG values can be very intimidating! Itâs hard to remember all the different normal values, what they mean, and which direction theyâre supposed to be going. With so much information, itâs super easy to get mixed up and make a stupid mistake on an exam, even when you really DO know how to interpret ABGs.