What is respiratory failure?
Respiratory failure is a condition where you don’t have enough oxygen in the tissues in your body (hypoxia) or when you have too much carbon dioxide in your blood (hypercapnia). You might also hear people use the term “acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF)” to describe it.
Respiratory failure is often a medical emergency. Call 911 or seek medical attention right away if you think you’re experiencing respiratory failure.
How respiration works
You can think of respiration as passengers traveling from the air to your tissues. When you breathe in, oxygen molecules travel to your lungs — the passengers arriving at the airport. The oxygen passengers arrive at the “airport gates” — small air sacs around your lungs called alveoli — and are picked up by your blood. They travel through your blood to their final destination in your tissues, like your organs and muscles. You need oxygen to reach its destination to stay alive.
After your blood cells drop off oxygen in your tissues, they have room to pick up carbon dioxide. Your body doesn’t need carbon dioxide (it’s a waste product). If too much of it builds up, there isn’t room in your blood’s transportation system to deliver oxygen. Your blood circulates through your body, back to your lungs, where it drops off carbon dioxide. When you breathe out, you get rid of the unnecessary waste to make room for more oxygen.
If any parts of this system fail, you won’t have enough oxygen to keep your tissues healthy.
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What are the types of respiratory failure?
Respiratory failure can come on suddenly (acute) or over time (chronic). There are two common types: hypoxemic respiratory failure (type 1) and hypercapnic respiratory failure (type 2). Other types include perioperative (related to surgery) respiratory failure (type 3) and respiratory failure due to shock (type 4).
Hypoxemic respiratory failure
Hypoxemic respiratory failure happens when you don’t have enough oxygen in your blood (hypoxemia). Heart and lung conditions are the most common causes. Hypoxemic respiratory failure is also called hypoxic respiratory failure.
Hypercapnic respiratory failure
Hypercapnic respiratory failure happens when you have too much carbon dioxide (CO2) in your blood. If your body can’t get rid of carbon dioxide, a waste product, there isn’t room for your blood cells to carry oxygen.
The most common causes of hypercapnic respiratory failure include heart, lung, muscle and neurological (brain and spinal cord) conditions. Certain medications can also cause it. Hypercapnic respiratory failure is also called hypercarbic respiratory failure.
Perioperative respiratory failure
Perioperative respiratory failure can happen when you have surgery. Anesthesia (medication that keeps you asleep) can keep you from breathing properly. Sometimes, air sacs in your lungs can collapse (atelectasis) and keep oxygen from getting into your blood.
Respiratory failure due to shock
Shock is a condition that causes low blood pressure, fluid in your lungs (pulmonary edema) and other issues that can lead to respiratory failure. Sepsis, cardiac events (like a heart attack) and blood loss can cause shock.
FAQs
If you have respiratory failure, you may receive oxygen therapy. There are different ways to get oxygen into your lungs. A noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) uses mild air pressure to keep your airways open.
Can you recover from respiratory failure? ›
Most people who survive ARDS go on to recover their normal or close to normal lung function within six months to a year. Others may not do as well, particularly if their illness was caused by severe lung damage or their treatment entailed long-term use of a ventilator.
How long can someone be in respiratory failure? ›
The time-to-death is around five years in patients with CWD and slowly progressive NMD, around two to three years in those with OHS and Overlap Syndrome, around one to two years in COPD patients and those with other diseases that lead to chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure.
Can respiratory failure be reversed? ›
There often isn't any cure for chronic respiratory failure, but you can manage your symptoms with treatment.
What triggers respiratory failure? ›
What causes it? Respiratory failure can be caused by several factors. Conditions that make it difficult to breathe in and get air into your lungs: Examples include weakness following a stroke, collapsed airways, and food getting stuck in and blocking your windpipe.
What is Stage 1 respiratory failure? ›
Type 1 respiratory failure occurs when the respiratory system cannot adequately provide oxygen to the body, leading to hypoxemia. Type 2 respiratory failure occurs when the respiratory system cannot sufficiently remove carbon dioxide from the body, leading to hypercapnia.
What is the survival rate for respiratory failure? ›
Patients survived 68% of episodes. Sixty percent of patients survived the initial episodes of respiratory failure, and 55% were alive after 6 months. During the next 2 years the mortality of these patients was high so that only 20% survived 30 months, and the same percentage survived 48 months.
What are signs that your lungs are failing? ›
Symptoms
- Difficulty with routine activities such as dressing, taking a shower, and climbing stairs, due to extreme tiredness.
- Shortness of breath or feeling like you cannot get enough air (called air hunger)
- Drowsiness.
- A bluish color on your fingers, toes, and lips.
End-Stage COPD Symptoms & Complications
However, many people have the following symptoms during end-stage COPD as well as in earlier stages of the illness: coughing, wheezing, large amounts of phlegm/mucus, chest tightness, pain, fatigue, insomnia, and/or constipation.
Why am I short of breath but my oxygen saturation is good? ›
You could possibly be retaining CO2. If this is the case, you could still show high sats but still feel short of breath. In fact, high CO2 will trigger the feeling of shortness of breath long before you are actually low on breath.
Check the person's airway, breathing, and pulse. If necessary, begin CPR. Loosen any tight clothing. Help the person use any prescribed medicine (such as an asthma inhaler or home oxygen).
How do you diagnose respiratory failure? ›
Arterial blood gas tests measure levels of oxygen, carbon dioxide, pH, and bicarbonate. A sample of your blood will be taken from your arteries. These tests help determine whether you have respiratory failure and what type it is. Blood tests can help find the cause of your respiratory failure.
What is the emergency management for respiratory failure? ›
The management of acute respiratory failure can be divided into an urgent resuscitation phase followed by a phase of ongoing care. The goal of the urgent resuscitation phase is to stabilize the patient as much as possible and to prevent any further life-threatening deterioration.
What is the name of respiratory failure medication? ›
Bronchodilators are an important component of treatment in respiratory failure caused by obstructive lung disease. These agents act to decrease muscle tone in both small and large airways in the lungs. This category includes beta-adrenergics, methylxanthines, and anticholinergics.
