Main symptoms:

• Aggressiveness
• Excitement
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Difficulty urinating
• Sleep disturbance
• General swelling
• Dyspnea
• Shallow breathing
• Skin redness
• Loss of consciousness
• Sweating
• Blueness of the skin
• Bruises under the eyes
• Decreased vision
• Convulsions
• Rapid breathing
• Cardiopalmus
• Cold sweat

Hypercapnia (syn. hypercarbia) is an increase in the level of carbon dioxide in the blood, which is caused by impaired breathing processes. The partial voltage exceeds 45 millimeters of mercury. The disease can develop in both adults and children.

• Etiology
• Classification
• Symptoms
• Diagnostics
• Treatment
• Possible complications
• Prevention and prognosis

The causes of the pathological condition are often pathological in nature and consist in a disorder of ventilation against the background of diseases of the respiratory system. Sources include polluted air, addiction to bad habits and other unfavorable factors.

The clinical picture is quite specific, expressed in a feeling of lack of air, rapid breathing, increased sweating, behavioral disturbances and changes in the skin.

The process of establishing the correct diagnosis is based on laboratory results. The diagnostic process requires instrumental procedures and manipulations performed by the attending physician.

Treatment tactics depend entirely on the underlying cause and are often conservative in nature. In some cases, a procedure such as artificial ventilation is resorted to.

Etiology

Hypercapnia has a wide variety of causes, divided into external and internal. The first category is the increased content of carbon dioxide in the air - if a person is in such an environment for a long time, a pathological condition develops. This group includes:

• some professional characteristics - bakers, divers and steelworkers are at risk;
• air pollution;
• prolonged stay of a person in an unventilated room;
• long-term addiction to cigarettes;
• passive smoking;
• inhalation of carbon dioxide during a fire;
• diving to great depths during diving;
• excess nutrition;
• improper operation of special breathing equipment, which is used during surgical operations - when the patient is under anesthesia.

Stuffy room and hypercapnia

Internal provocateurs are represented by the following list:

• convulsive or epileptic seizures;
• violation of the integrity of the brain stem, which can occur against the background of injury, oncological process, inflammatory lesion or stroke;
• the course of bronchial asthma;
• pathologies of the spinal cord, for example, polio;
• irrational use of drugs;
• sleep apnea syndrome - there is a sudden cessation of breathing movements;
• muscle tissue dystrophy;
• deformational changes in the chest, in particular kyphosis;
• sepsis;
• severe obesity;
• myasthenia gravis;
• chronic bronchopulmonary diseases accompanied by obstructive syndrome;
• damage to the central nervous system;
• fever;
• disturbance of gas exchange in the lung tissue - the disorder may occur due to Mendelssohn syndrome, Hamman-Rich disease, pneumothorax, respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary edema or inflammation;
• period of bearing a child - often the disease develops in the 3rd trimester, when any breathing problems can cause hypercapnia;
• respiratory acidosis;
• malignant hyperthermia;
• atherosclerosis.

The condition is closely related to hypoxia - insufficient oxygen in the blood or oxygen starvation of the body.

Causes

The causes of hypercapnia are divided into internal and external. The second category includes factors characterized by an increase in the level of carbon dioxide in the air. This group includes the following reasons:

• occupational hazards (risk groups include cooks, divers, steelworkers);
• increased air pollution (hypercapnia most often occurs in urban residents);
• long stay in an unventilated area;
• smoking;
• inhalation of tobacco smoke;
• the release of large amounts of carbon dioxide during the combustion of certain materials;
• diving (diving to great depths);
• improper operation of the artificial lung ventilation device used during surgical interventions.

Internal causes include the following factors:

• epileptic or convulsive seizures;
• ischemic lesions and brain stem injuries;
• oncological diseases;
• consequences of ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke;
• inflammatory processes in brain tissue;
• attacks of bronchial asthma;
• spinal cord damage (poliomyelitis);
• uncontrolled use of certain medications;
• respiratory arrests that occur during sleep (apnea is characterized by a sudden slowing of breathing movements);
• decreased tone of the respiratory muscles;
• chest deformation caused by spinal curvature or injury;
• septicemia (blood poisoning);
• severe obesity;
• myasthenia gravis;
• chronic pathologies of the respiratory system, accompanied by pulmonary obstruction;
• neurological disorders;
• febrile syndrome;
• disturbance of pulmonary gas exchange (occurs against the background of Hamman-Rich syndrome, Mendelsohn disease, accumulation of air in the pleural cavity, respiratory distress syndrome in newborns);
• pneumonia accompanied by pulmonary edema;
• pregnancy (hypercapnia often develops in later stages, when the growing uterus displaces internal organs);
• malignant course of hyperthermia;
• atherosclerosis;
• development of respiratory acidosis.

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Classification

Based on the nature of the course, hypercapnia occurs:

• acute - characterized by a sharp appearance of clinical signs and a significant deterioration of the condition, most often found in children;
• chronic - the clinic is expressed in a slow increase in symptoms over a long time.

There are several degrees of severity of the disease:

• moderate;
• deep - symptoms from the central nervous system appear and manifestations of acute respiratory failure increase;
• acidotic coma.

Depending on the causes of development, the disease is:

• endogenous - internal sources act as provocateurs;
• exogenous - develops against the background of external factors.

A separate category is chronic compensated hypercapnia, which occurs when a person is exposed to a slow increase in the level of carbon dioxide in the air for a long period of time. The processes of adaptation to the new environment are activated in the body - this is compensation for the condition with increased respiratory movements.

Not a single classification includes permissive hypercapnia - a targeted limitation of the volume of ventilation of the lungs, which is necessary to avoid excessive stretching of the alveoli, despite an increase in CO2 beyond normal limits, up to 50-100 millimeters Hg. Art.

Symptoms

Usually the disease develops slowly, with a gradual increase in the intensity of clinical manifestations. It is extremely rare for symptoms to develop at lightning speed.

Symptoms of hypercapnia will vary slightly depending on the severity of the problem. For example, the moderate form is characterized by:

• sleep problems;
• euphoria;
• increased sweating;
• skin hyperemia;
• increased respiratory movements;
• increased blood tone;
• increased heart rate.

The deep stage is expressed by the following symptoms:

• increased aggressiveness and agitation;
• severe headache;
• nausea and weakness;
• the appearance of bruises under the eyes;
• swelling;
• decreased visual acuity;
• rare and shallow breathing;
• cyanosis of the skin;
• strong cold sweat;
• increased heart rate up to 150 beats per minute;
• increased blood pressure values;
• dizziness;
• difficulty urinating.

Acidotic coma is expressed by the following symptoms:

• decreased reflexes;
• hyperhidrosis;
• a sharp decrease in blood tone;
• loss of consciousness;
• cyanotic skin tone;
• convulsive seizures.

In case of chronic disease, symptoms include:

• constant fatigue;
• decreased ability to work;
• decreased blood pressure;
• excitement followed by depression of consciousness;
• dyspnea;
• breathing problems;
• sleep disturbance;
• headaches and dizziness.

In children, the symptoms are practically no different. It should be remembered that in this category of patients, hypercapnia develops much faster and is much more severe than in adults.

In situations where the disease develops against the background of other diseases, the possibility of appearance of external signs of the underlying pathology cannot be ruled out.

If symptoms occur, it is very important to provide emergency assistance to the victim. You should call a medical team to your home, and then follow these steps:

• remove or remove a person from a room with a high content of carbon dioxide;
• perform tracheal intubation (only if the patient’s condition is serious) - this can be done by an experienced clinician;
• administer emergency oxygen therapy.

The only measure of assistance to a person who has fallen into an acidotic coma is artificial ventilation.

Main symptoms of hypercapnia

Symptoms

The clinical picture of moderate hypercapnia includes the following symptoms:

• sleep disturbance;
• causeless euphoria;
• increased sweating;
• redness of the skin;
• increased respiratory rate;
• cardiopalmus;
• increased blood pressure.

With a pronounced increase in the level of carbon dioxide in the blood, the following signs appear:

• nervous overexcitation;
• aggression and irritability;
• acute headache;
• muscle weakness;
• nausea and vomiting;
• swelling of the face and lower extremities;
• the appearance of dark circles under the eyes;
• decreased visual acuity;
• pallor and cyanosis of the skin;
• decreased respiratory rate;
• profuse cold sweat;
• pronounced increase in heart rate (up to 150 beats/min);
• blood pressure surges;
• dizziness;
• decrease in the volume of urine produced by the kidneys.

The following manifestations are characteristic of acidotic coma:

• disappearance of reflexes;
• increased sweating;
• loss of consciousness;
• pronounced bluishness of the skin;
• seizures;
• drop in blood pressure.

Diagnostics

A preliminary diagnosis can be made during the initial consultation. The assumption is confirmed by analyzing the results of laboratory and hardware studies. Primary diagnosis includes the following steps:

• studying anamnesis (used to identify chronic diseases that can provoke hypercapnia);
• collecting a life history (helps to identify external factors that cause an increase in the level of carbon dioxide in the blood);
• assessment of the appearance of the skin;
• measurement of heart rate and blood pressure;
• interviewing the patient or the person who brought the victim to a medical facility.

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Laboratory tests play an important role in identifying pathology: a general blood test, assessment of the gas and biochemical composition of the liquid. Hardware diagnostic methods include:

• ECG (helps identify disturbances in the functioning of the cardiovascular system);
• X-ray examination of the chest (aimed at detecting pathologies of the lungs and bronchi);
• electroencephalography (aimed at assessing brain functions).

Diagnostics

An experienced clinician will be able to make the correct diagnosis based on symptoms and laboratory results.

The doctor needs:

• study your medical history to look for a possible underlying disease;
• collect and analyze your life history to identify external causes, which will allow you to determine whether there was a need for a procedure such as permissive hypercapnia;
• assess the condition of the skin;
• measure pulse, heart rate and blood tone;
• interview the patient in detail (if the person is conscious) or the one who delivered the victim to a medical facility - to draw up a complete symptomatic picture and determine the severity of the condition.

Laboratory research:

• general clinical blood test;
• blood biochemistry;
• assessment of the gas composition of biological fluid;
• CBS analysis.

As for instrumental procedures, the following tests are performed:

• chest x-ray;
• ECG;
• ultrasonography;
• CT;
• MRI.

How is MRI performed?

Treatment

Treatment tactics depend on the sources behind which hypercapnia occurred. If the pathology is exogenous in nature, it is necessary:

• ventilate the room;
• go out into the fresh air;
• take a break from work;
• drink plenty of liquid.

If the malaise has become a secondary phenomenon, to eliminate the pathology it is necessary to eliminate the underlying disease. You may need to take the following medications:

• bronchodilators;
• antibiotics;
• anti-inflammatory drugs;
• hormonal medications;
• immunostimulants;
• diuretics;
• bronchodilators;
• medications to relieve symptoms.

You can eliminate the negative effects of carbon dioxide on the body in the following ways:

• infusion therapy;
• artificial ventilation;
• oxygen therapy;
• chest massage;
• Exercise therapy.

Hypercapnia

This definition of hypercapnia refers to a condition of the human body during which an increase in carbon dioxide occurs. Tissues and arterial blood may suffer from this property. It can appear after exposure to many factors. First of all, hypercapnia begins to manifest itself if a person is often in a closed space. The very first symptom that the disease has begun to progress is a headache. Very often, especially in the winter, a person is indoors, which does not allow the influx of clean air to settle in the body. If you are regularly in a closed space, chronic fatigue and depression begin to appear. To avoid this, you need to go out into the fresh air as often as possible and take short walks. The manifestation of hypercapnia threatens even some professions. For the most part, people are prone to this disease after long stays in mines, wells, under water or submarines. In addition to these factors, sometimes cases occur when the disease occurs after the operation has been performed, and complications begin after anesthesia. These causes are called external, because the disease develops from factors that act from the outside. Internal origin of the disease occurs due to the fact that various pathologies are present in the human body. They may be associated with hypoxia or insufficiency in the supply of oxygen to the respiratory organs. Hypercapnia has a negative effect on the body of each person, but in completely different ways. It all depends on how long the person spent in a closed space. The amount of carbon dioxide in the blood begins to increase, which is what causes hypercapnia. If you do not seek medical help in time and do not pay attention to the first symptoms, this can lead to serious consequences. Irreversible changes begin to occur in the entire functionality of the human body. Not only the chemical composition of the blood and muscles suffers, but also the physical one. Little by little, all metabolic processes begin to slow down, which can threaten complete exhaustion of the body and loss of its ability to work. Once the disease of hypercapnia has begun, physiological processes can be severely disrupted. This occurs due to the fact that the amount of carbon dioxide in the blood increases markedly. Subsequently, this phenomenon begins to increase the acidity of the internal environment. This process is called acidosis and causes great harm to the body. Once this process has started, intracellular metabolism begins to disturb. It significantly reduces the amount of hemoglobin in the blood. It is known to be a guide of oxygen into blood cells and tissues. All internal organs begin to suffer from the fact that they completely lack oxygen. At this stage, even the fact that a large amount of fresh air enters the lungs will not help. All metabolic processes are significantly disrupted, and oxygen does not spread throughout the body. Due to all the changes in the functioning of the body, many diseases begin to appear. First of all, there is a decrease in body temperature. This depends on the fact that there is a very large amount of carbon dioxide in the body. With its cumulative effect, it begins to excite all breathing centers. Because of this, problems with shortness of breath or difficulty in inhaling air may occur. If a very large dose of carbon dioxide accumulates in the body, this threatens to completely stop the respiratory tract. Hypercapnia can also occur in small doses. It gradually begins to complicate the respiratory processes, which in the future will lead to a decrease in the level of performance and problems in the functioning of the cardiovascular system. After another portion of carbon dioxide has accumulated in the body, it can give an impetus so that blood begins to flow in large quantities to the vital organs of a person. First of all, the kidneys, heart and brain begin to suffer. At this stage of the development of the disease, problems with increased blood pressure begin. In addition, if at the very beginning a large amount of carbon dioxide simply excited the nervous system, then in the future it can lead to regular pain and cramps. In many manifestations of hypercapnia, there are variable signs. This is due to the fact that the entire disease progresses slowly and the body has time to adapt to the new impact.

Symptoms of hypercapnia

• Headache. • Nausea. • Fatigue. • Depression. • Vomit. • Shortness of breath. • Blue discoloration of the skin. • Visual impairment. • Loss of consciousness. If you do not contact a specialist with the symptoms that appear in time, then this disease can lead to the onset of oxygen starvation, and this will cause the death of a person. In order to cure this disease or prevent its occurrence, it is necessary to be in the fresh air as often as possible. After all, if the disease is progressive, then only artificial ventilation will save the person.