Coma and Other Altered States of Consciousness

Abstract

Regardless of its cause, acute neuromuscular respiratory weakness leads to alveolar hypoventilation. Additional features that complicate the clinical presentation are upper airway muscle weakness and pulmonary complications (mostly due to aspiration). Having an understanding of basic ventilatory physiology and the pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying mechanical neuromuscular respiratory failure is essential for early recognition, initial evaluation, and further etiologic investigation of neuromuscular respiratory failure. Besides allowing for targeted treatment, identifying the cause has prognostic implications.