aetiology of hypoxaemia
Last reviewed 10/2020
Possible causes of hypoxaemia include:
- cardio-respiratory disorders
- hypoventilation
- a mismatch of ventilation-perfusion
- venous to arterial shunt
- diffusion impairment
- low inspired O2 e.g. high altitude
- a pathological desaturation of venous blood e.g. may rarely be caused by carboxyhaemoglobin