clinical features
Last reviewed 01/2018
With episodes of hyperventilation the patient may report breathlessness, followed by paraesthesiae and/or tetany in distal limbs. The patient may complain of chest pain.
If severe, arterial hypocapnia may trigger cerebral vessel vasoconstriction and the patient may become light headed and lose consciousness.
After losing consciousness, breathing and blood gases return to normal restoring cerebral blood flow and the patient recovers.
The symptoms are reproducible with voluntary hyperventilation.