What Is Asphyxiation and How Can You Recognize the Critical Signs Before It's Too Late?

Have you ever felt a sudden tightness in your chest making it hard to breathe? Or perhaps you have seen someone struggle for air in a moment of panic? This scary situation is known medically as asphyxiation. Understanding how it happens and what to do can help you save a life.

Asphyxiation occurs when your body does not get enough oxygen. This guide breaks down what asphyxiation means, the different types, and how to respond during a medical emergency. Read on to learn how to keep yourself and your loved ones safe.

What Is Asphyxiation?

Simply put, asphyxiation is when your body lacks enough oxygen to function. This condition disrupts your normal breathing process. Sometimes it leads to unconsciousness. In severe cases, it can cause death. People also refer to this condition as asphyxia or suffocation. They all mean the same thing.

Types of Asphyxiation.

There are several types of asphyxiation. Let us look at the main categories so you can understand them clearly.

Mechanical Asphyxia.

Mechanical asphyxia happens when a physical object or body position stops you from breathing. Think about someone grabbing your neck or a child swallowing a toy that blocks their throat. Sometimes a poor sleeping position causes this. For example, if a baby rolls onto their stomach and cannot roll back, their nose and mouth get blocked against a pillow.

Traumatic Asphyxia.

This type is a specific form of mechanical asphyxia. It happens when an outside force crushes your chest. This area is your thoracic cavity, which contains your ribs, muscles, and tissues. Imagine a severe accident where a heavy weight crushes your chest. Blood from your heart then flows backward through your veins into your neck and brain.

Perinatal Asphyxia.

This condition affects newborn babies. It happens when a baby does not get enough oxygen right before birth, during delivery, or right away after birth. This situation requires close medical attention and fast action in the delivery room.

Compressive Asphyxia.

Compressive asphyxia is another form of mechanical asphyxia. It occurs when external pressure squeezes your chest or belly area. This can happen in a crowd during a stampede or concert crush. It also happens if someone sits or kneels heavily on your chest.

How Common Is Asphyxiation?

Asphyxiation is more common than many people realize. For example, in the United States alone, nearly 19,000 people died from asphyxiation in a single recent year.

also, between 2018 and 2019, accidental asphyxiation was the leading cause of injury-related death in infants under one year old. Because of this high risk, parents and caregivers must remain very watchful around young children.

How Asphyxia Affects Your Body.

Asphyxia impacts your body in various ways depending on the exact cause.

Foreign Object Blockage.

Imagine something blocks your airway. Carbon dioxide builds up in your body. Doctors call this hypercapnia. At the same time, oxygen fails to reach your body tissues, which is called hypoxia.

Your body then tries hard to breathe again. This struggle can look frightening. You might notice wide eyes, changes in skin color, grabbing the neck with both hands, or soft coughing.

Your blood pressure and heart rate shoot up quickly. Your blood pH level drops. Your body releases stress hormones called catecholamines. These hormones trigger your fight-or-flight response.

Eventually, your blood pressure drops and your heart rate slows down.

If you do not remove the blockage or get help right away, cardiac arrest can happen within four to five minutes. This makes the situation extremely dangerous.

Drowning.

In about 10 percent of drowning cases, water entering the throat causes your vocal cords to spasm and shut tightly. Doctors call this laryngospasm. Even though you die from asphyxiation, your lungs actually contain very little water.

In the other 90 percent of cases, the muscles around the opening of your vocal cords relax. This allows water to flood into your lungs.

If the water is freshwater, your body absorbs it quickly. This dilutes your blood plasma and destroys your red blood cells, a process called hemolysis.

If the water is saltwater, fluid moves from your circulatory system into your lungs, which lowers your blood plasma volume.

Symptoms of Asphyxiation.

Asphyxiation causes several noticeable signs and symptoms:

• Trouble breathing, also known as dyspnea.
• A feeling of running out of air.
• Fast or deep breathing, known as hyperventilation.
• Loss of consciousness.
• Coughing.
• Hoarse voice or changes in speech.
• Inability to speak.
• Changes in face or lip color, which may turn red, purple, blue, or gray.
• Difficulty or inability to swallow.
• Memory loss.
• Involuntary urination or involuntary defecation.
• Dizziness.
• Headaches.

Causes of Asphyxia.

Many different factors can cause asphyxiation. Let us review the most common ones:

• Anaphylaxis: This is a severe allergic reaction, often triggered by food. It can cause vomiting, swelling of the hands, feet, and face, especially the lips.
• Asthma: This is a chronic lung condition. Air pollution, exercise, pet dander, and tobacco smoke can trigger and worsen asthma attacks.
• Positional Asphyxia: This happens when your body position blocks breathing. It often affects newborns and young children who lack the strength to turn their bodies. For example, if a baby sleeps face down and their nose and mouth press against a mattress, they cannot turn away.
• Chemical Asphyxiation: This occurs when you breathe in a toxic gas that replaces oxygen in your lungs. Carbon monoxide, cyanide, hydrogen sulfide, and harsh household cleaning fumes can cause this dangerous state.
• Opioid Overdose: Opioids are drugs that act on nerve cells to reduce pain. Taking too much slows down your breathing until it stops completely.
• Drowning: This happens when you are submerged in water or another liquid, blocking air from entering your lungs.
• Foreign Object Blockage: An object blocks your airway. Inhaling food improperly or choking on vomit after alcohol poisoning can cause this.
• Strangulation: Pressure applied to the neck by hands, cords, or ropes blocks your airway.

How to Recognize Asphyxiation.

Asphyxiation is a medical emergency that needs immediate care. If a child or adult near you suddenly cannot breathe, ask if they are choking. If they cannot answer, look for these warning signs:

• Clutching the throat with one or both hands, which is the universal sign for choking.
• Weak, ineffective coughing.
• A high-pitched whistling sound when breathing, known as wheezing.
• Inability to talk.
• Fainting or losing consciousness.

If a baby cannot breathe, watch for behavioral changes. Signs include breathing trouble, weak crying, or a quiet, weak cough.

Should You Give Drinks to Someone Who Cannot Breathe?

No, never give someone a drink if they are struggling to breathe. Giving liquids to someone with an airway obstruction can block their airway further.

Tests Used to Diagnose Asphyxia.

If an object is partially blocking your airway, your doctor may order an X-ray or a bronchoscopy. These tests help locate the object so doctors can remove it safely.

Treatment for Asphyxia.

Treatment depends on what caused the breathing trouble. Common medical treatments include:

• Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR): Pushing down on the chest helps keep blood flowing to vital organs until the heartbeat returns. This is a vital first-aid step.
• Heimlich Maneuver: Giving abdominal thrusts helps dislodge items stuck in the airway. This technique works well when food blocks the throat.
• medicines: Doctors use specific drugs based on the cause. Examples include an inhaler for asthma, an epinephrine auto-injector (EpiPen) for allergies, or naloxone (Narcan) to reverse an opioid overdose.
• Mouth-to-Mouth Resuscitation: Rescue breaths help stimulate breathing. This helps people who have drowned or suffered an opioid overdose.
• Oxygen Therapy: Doctors deliver extra oxygen using a breathing tube, oxygen mask, nasal cannula, or a mechanical ventilator machine.

How to Prevent Asphyxiation.

The best way to prevent asphyxiation is to stay cautious and aware. If someone near you cannot breathe, call 911 or 999 right away.

• When eating, chew your food slowly and swallow completely before speaking. Watch young children closely while they eat. Encourage them to take small bites and finish swallowing before talking.
• If you have food allergies, carry an epinephrine auto-injector with you at all times. Always read ingredient labels on everything you eat.
• Never swim alone. Always swim with at least one other person. If you cannot swim well, wear a life jacket.
• If you suffer from asthma, keep your rescue inhaler nearby at all times.
• Install carbon monoxide detectors in your home. Have fuel-burning appliances, such as stoves, water heaters, and furnaces, checked by a trained technician every year.

What Happens After an Asphyxia Event?

If you treat the cause of asphyxiation right away, recovery is very likely.

However, if medical teams do not treat asphyxiation quickly, it can cause lasting damage like a stroke, brain injury, or death. Prompt action makes all the difference.

Questions to Ask Your Doctor.

If you or a loved one has experienced a breathing scare, consider asking your doctor these questions:

• What should I do if someone stops breathing in front of me?
• Did the lack of oxygen cause any long-term or permanent health effects for me?
• Do I have food allergies, and should I consult an allergist?
• What steps can I take to prevent asphyxiation risks in the future?

Sources & References:
1. Cleveland Clinic. Asphyxiia & Asphyxiation: Causes, Symptoms & First Aid. Available at: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/
2. Mayo Clinic. Choking: First Aid Guidelines. Available at: https://www.mayoclinic.org/
3. National Health Service (NHS UK). Choking and Emergency Life Support. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Unintentional Suffocation and Choking Statistics. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/
5. National Institutes of Health (NIH) / PubMed Central. how it happens of Hypoxia and Mechanical Asphyxia. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/