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Treatment depends on the cause. In some cases supplementary oxygen is needed, in severe cases artificial ventilation may be necessary. In mild cases where the cause was hypoxic breathing gas, it may only be necessary to return to a normally oxygenated environment. Underlying medical problems may require assessment and treatment.
The partial pressure of oxygen in the air or other breathing gas mixture in the lungs controls the oxygen loading of blood. A critical P O 2 of 30 millimetres of mercury (40 mbar) in the lungs will sustain consciousness when breathing is resumed after a breath-hold dive. This is about 4% oxygen in the lungs and 45% oxygen saturation of the ...
Generalized hypoxia is a medical condition in which the tissues of the body are deprived of the necessary levels of oxygen due to an insufficient supply of oxygen, which may be due to the composition or pressure of the breathing gas, decreased lung ventilation, or respiratory disease, any of which may cause a lower than normal oxygen content in the arterial blood, and consequently a reduced ...
Hypoxia can be due to external causes, when the breathing gas is hypoxic, or internal causes, such as reduced effectiveness of gas transfer in the lungs, reduced capacity of the blood to carry oxygen, compromised general or local perfusion, or inability of the affected tissues to extract oxygen from, or metabolically process, an adequate supply ...
Additionally, oxygen in a confined space can be consumed if carbon dioxide scrubbers are used without sufficient attention to supplementing the oxygen which has been consumed. Hypoxic or anoxic breathing gas mixtures, and exposure to a vacuum or other extreme low pressure environment will remove oxygen from the blood in the alveoli. [18]
Respiratory failure is classified as either Type 1 or Type 2, based on whether there is a high carbon dioxide level, and can be acute or chronic. In clinical trials, the definition of respiratory failure usually includes increased respiratory rate, abnormal blood gases (hypoxemia, hypercapnia, or both), and evidence of increased work of breathing.
Intermittent hypoxia (also known as episodic hypoxia) is an intervention in which a person or animal undergoes alternating periods of normoxia and hypoxia. Normoxia is defined as exposure to oxygen levels normally found in Earth's atmosphere (~21% O 2 ) and hypoxia as any oxygen levels lower than those of normoxia.
An abrupt stop of pulmonary gas exchange lasting for more than five minutes may permanently damage vital organs, especially the brain. Lack of oxygen to the brain causes loss of consciousness. Brain injury is likely if respiratory arrest goes untreated for more than three minutes, and death is almost certain if more than five minutes.