Unmasking hypoxemia: the role of standard PaO₂ in interpreting Arterial blood gas analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In the assessment of acute respiratory failure (ARF), PaO2/FIO2 ratio is widely used, but may be misleading in the presence of hyperventilation-induced hypocapnia. The standard PaO2 (stPaO2), a theoretical value corrected for PaCO2, may improve clinical interpretation of gas exchange severity.

Methods

We conducted an online survey among Italian physicians using a case vignette of three hypothetical patients with identical PaO2 values but differing PaCO2 levels. Participants were asked to rank the severity of the cases based solely on arterial blood gas analysis (ABG). A second round was offered after introducing the concept of stPaO2 and providing corresponding values.

Results

A total of 2,241 (8.9%) physicians (median age 53 years, 54.1% male) completed th

SUBMITTER: Di Marco F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12674182 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature