The air detector alarms during treatment. if the machine is working properly, the dialysis technician should expect which of these events to have occurred

• A. Blood leak detected
• B. Low arterial pressure alarm
• C. Increased venous pressure
• D. Blood pump has stopped

Answer: (D)

Air detectors protect patients by stopping blood flow as soon as air is detected in the circuit. If the machine is working properly, an alarm from the air detector means the safety mechanism should respond by halting the blood pump to prevent air from entering the patient’s circulation. So the expected event is that the blood pump has stopped, allowing the clinician to purge the air and re-prime the lines before resuming treatment. Other alarms like blood leak, low arterial pressure, or increased venous pressure indicate different problems and are not the immediate consequence of an air detector alarm in a properly functioning machine.