Acute hypoxemic respiratory failure is a severe lack of oxygen that does not respond to oxygen therapy. If not diagnosed and treated properly, the patient will die quickly, with a mortality rate of 50-70%.

When a person has acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, the body is in a state of severe arterial hypoxia and cannot respond to breathing O2. Accordingly, the body does not have enough oxygen to supply organs such as the heart, brain or the rest of the body. This can cause symptoms in the patient such as difficulty breathing, cyanosis of the extremities and lips, and disturbances of consciousness.