[Metabolic acidosis under an acid load and the role of the respiratory system in its compensation in middle-aged and elderly persons].

30 healthy 60- to 89-year-old subjects and 20 young ones (20 to 31 years) were given orally ammonium chloride 125 mg/kg. The signs of subsequent metabolic acidosis were more obvious in older subjects and they lasted longer. In young subjects, the intake of ammonium chloride induced a considerable hyperventilation.