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Hypoxemia (also spelled hypoxaemia) is an abnormally low level of oxygen in the blood. [1] [2] More specifically, it is oxygen deficiency in arterial blood. [3] Hypoxemia is usually caused by pulmonary disease. Sometimes the concentration of oxygen in the air is decreased leading to hypoxemia.
In COVID-19, the arterial and general tissue oxygen levels can drop without any initial warning.The chest x-ray may show diffuse pneumonia.Cases of silent hypoxia with COVID-19 have been reported for patients who did not experience shortness of breath or coughing until their oxygen levels had depressed to such a degree that they were at risk of acute respiratory distress (ARDS) and organ failure.
Hypoxemic hypoxia is a lack of oxygen caused by low oxygen tension in the arterial blood, due to the inability of the lungs to sufficiently oxygenate the blood. Causes include hypoventilation, impaired alveolar diffusion, and pulmonary shunting. [8] This definition overlaps considerably with that of hypoxic hypoxia.
Pneumonia believed to be due to bacteria is treated with antibiotics. [11] If the pneumonia is severe, the affected person is generally hospitalized. [20] Oxygen therapy may be used if oxygen levels are low. [11] Each year, pneumonia affects about 450 million people globally (7% of the population) and results in about 4 million deaths.
Additional common findings in ARDS include partial collapse of the alveoli (atelectasis) and low levels of oxygen in the blood . The clinical syndrome is associated with pathological findings including pneumonia, eosinophilic pneumonia , cryptogenic organizing pneumonia , acute fibrinous organizing pneumonia, and diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) .
Respiratory failure results from inadequate gas exchange by the respiratory system, meaning that the arterial oxygen, carbon dioxide, or both cannot be kept at normal levels. A drop in the oxygen carried in the blood is known as hypoxemia; a rise in arterial carbon dioxide levels is called hypercapnia. Respiratory failure is classified as ...
A laboratory then processes the blood sample to determine oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. Assessing and monitoring blood gas levels is the most accurate means to identify a state of respiratory compromise in patients.
[13] [15] Pneumonia is also the leading cause of death in children less than five years of age in low income countries. [15] The most common cause of pneumonia is pneumococcal bacteria, Streptococcus pneumoniae accounts for 2/3 of bacteremic pneumonias. [16] Invasive pneumococcal pneumonia has a mortality rate of around 20%. [14]