Cerebral hypoxia

Cerebral hypoxia is insufficient oxygen reaching the brain. Depending on its severity and duration, it can disrupt brain function and cause lasting tissue injury.

Cerebral oxygen delivery: The supply of oxygen to brain tissue through blood flow and oxygen carried by hemoglobin. Hypoxia develops when oxygen delivery falls below the brain’s metabolic needs.
Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: Brain dysfunction or injury following a period of reduced oxygen supply and blood flow. This diagnosis describes a major pattern of brain injury caused by combined hypoxia and ischemia.
Pulse oximetry: A noninvasive method that estimates the percentage of hemoglobin carrying oxygen in arterial blood. It helps detect low blood oxygen, though it does not directly measure brain oxygenation.
Cerebral ischemia: Insufficient blood flow to brain tissue, usually reducing its supply of oxygen and nutrients. Ischemia is a flow problem; hypoxia can occur with normal flow if blood carries too little oxygen.
Hypoxic brain injury: Damage to brain tissue caused by inadequate oxygen supply. It names the tissue damage that can result when cerebral hypoxia is severe or prolonged.
Cerebral blood flow: The volume of blood passing through brain tissue per unit of time. Reduced blood flow limits the oxygen reaching otherwise viable brain tissue.
Neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: Brain injury in a newborn associated with inadequate oxygen and blood flow around birth. It is a distinct clinical form, with assessment and treatment tailored to newborns.
Arterial blood gas test: A blood test that measures acidity, carbon dioxide, and oxygen in an arterial sample. It quantifies blood oxygenation when suspected hypoxia requires precise assessment.
Hypoxemia: An abnormally low level of oxygen in arterial blood. Hypoxemia can cause cerebral hypoxia, but brain oxygen shortage can also occur without it.
Neuronal cell death: The irreversible loss of neurons through regulated or unregulated cellular processes. Prolonged oxygen deprivation can exhaust neuronal energy reserves and cause cell death.

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