Question

Once when teaching this class, I had a student nearly faint during an exam. We moved the student into a back room, and called the paramedics; the student had very altered consciousness, and felt tingling and numbness in their hands and feet. When the paramedics arrived, they had the student breathe into a paper bag for a while. Within minutes, the student felt better. The paramedics thought that the student might have an anxiety disorder, and had (due to nervousness) hyperventileted during the exam. Why would hyperventilating course those symptoms, and why would breathing into a paper bag remedy them?

Answer 1

Given information clearly indicates that the student had hyperventilation syndrome due to the stress.It is also termed as psychogenic hyperventilation syndrome.

Hyperventilation Syndrome is a condition characterized by collection of physical and emotional symptoms which results due to deep and rapid breathing by patient.

Hyperventilation Symptoms includes :

• Chest tightness
• Rapid,deep breathing
• Sighing often
• Dizziness
• Faintness
• Headache
• Altered conciousness
• Palpitation
• Tachycardia (rapid heart rate)
• Cold,clammy extremities
• Twitching/Cramps in fingers of both hands and legs.
• Numbness
• Shivering
• Pain abdomen
• Anxiety

As a result of deep and rapid breathing ,hyperventilation occurs which removes most of the carbon dioxide from the blood resulting in increased blood pH(respiratory alkolosis) causing reduced oxygen in the body tissues and vital organs.

Low carbon dioxide level in blood leads to narrowing of blood vessel that supply blood to the brain,which causes symptoms like lightheadedness,altered sensorium and tingling sensation in the fingers.

CO_{​​​​​2} helps in relaxation of smooth muscles.Due to low CO_{​​​​​2}  level in blood hypocalcemia occurs,which together contribute in spasm or twitching of fingers in hand and lower extremities.

Rebreathing from paper bag helps in relieving symptoms of hyperventilation syndrome.

The reason behind this is replacing the CO^{_{​​​​2}} back into blood.When you are breathing into a paper bag,there will be accumaulation of carbon dioxide which you exhale,rebreathing this carbon dioxide helps in replacing the CO_{​​​​​2} back into blood which causes reversing of all the mechanism and relieving of symotoms.