PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Chandra, Atanu
AU  - Chakraborty, Uddalak
AU  - Pal, Jyotirmoy
AU  - Karmakar, Parthasarathi
TI  - Silent hypoxia: a frequently overlooked clinical entity in patients with COVID-19
AID  - 10.1136/bcr-2020-237207
DP  - 2020 Sep 01
TA  - BMJ Case Reports
PG  - e237207
VI  - 13
IP  - 9
4099  - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/13/9/e237207.short
4100  - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/13/9/e237207.full
SO  - BMJ Case Reports2020 Sep 01; 13
AB  - COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 may present with a wide spectrum of symptoms ranging from mild upper respiratory tract infection like illness to severe pneumonia and death. Patients may have severe hypoxaemia without proportional features of respiratory distress, also known as ‘silent’ or ‘apathetic’ hypoxia. We present a case of a 56-year-old man with COVID-19 who presented to the fever clinic of our institution with fever and cough without any respiratory distress but low oxygen saturation. The patient deteriorated over the next 2 days but eventually recovered of his illness in due course of time. This case demonstrates ‘silent hypoxia’ as a possible presentation in COVID-19 and emphasises the importance of meticulous clinical examination including oxygen saturation measurements in suspected or confirmed patients.