asphyxia /asfik″sē·ə/ [Gk, a + sphyxis, without pulse] , severe hypoxia leading to hypoxemia and hypercapnia, loss of consciousness, and, if not corrected, death. Some of the more common causes of asphyxia are drowning, electrical shock, aspiration of vomitus, lodging of a foreign body in the respiratory tract, inhalation of toxic gas or smoke, and poisoning. Oxygen and artificial ventilation are promptly administered to prevent damage to the brain. The underlying cause is then treated. See also artificial ventilation. −asphyxiated, adj., −asphyxiate, v.
