The nurse is caring for a patient with no spontaneous respiratory effort who requires mechanical ventilation.The first blood gas after initiating the ventilator shows a pH of 7.52 and a PCO₂ of 20.What intervention is required to correct this pH imbalance?

A) Increase fluid infusion.
B) Increase oxygen percentage.
C) Reduce number of breaths/min.
D) Increase number of breaths/min.

The patient's PCO₂ is too low and his pH is too high; reducing the breaths per minute will help the patient to retain CO₂,which will increase the pH.Fluid administration will not reduce pH or increase carbon dioxide retention.Administering oxygen will not reduce pH or increase carbon dioxide retention,and would be indicated only if PaO₂ were low.Increasing the number of breaths per minute would further lower PCO₂ and increase pH.