The circulatory shock is a sensitive or critical state in which the patient has insufficient to good perfusion of tissues, which lead to cellular hypoxia (low oxygen), this damage is irreversible unless it is treated in a timely manner, the two characteristic features of a patient who presents shock are decreased tissue perfusion, in conjunction with sustained hypotension. By reducing cardiac output or perfusion, a massive organic alteration is triggered in which the patient may fall into a coma, acidosis (body pH less than 7.35) or may suffer cardiac disorders that generate arrhythmias and the patient eventually dies.
There are different types of shock and this classification is directed according to its etiology or cause:
- Cardiogenic Shock: the failure occurs at the level of the cardiac muscle, contraction is impossible and therefore it will not satisfy the tissue needs of oxygen and nutrients, it is mainly caused by acute myocardial infarction (AMI), heart failure, cardiomyopathy, among other pathologies that trigger insufficient cardiac output.
- Hypovolemic shock: the failure is not generated at the cardiac level, but is directed to the small amount of blood (plasma or complete) or to the decrease in effective circulating blood volume, it will be triggered by pathologies that induce complete blood loss, plasma or extracellular fluid such as hemorrhages, burns, severe diarrhea, among others.
- Obstructive Shock: in this situation, cardiac function and blood volume are in perfect condition, but there is an obstruction in the cardiovascular system that makes it impossible for the recurrent transit to the blood flow tissues, this is a characteristic symptom of pathologies such as cardiac tamponade, effusion pleural, pulmonary embolism, among others, which trigger an inability to adequately fill the coronary cavities or there is an obstruction in the outflow of the heart.
- Distributive shock: There is a loss of vasomotor capacity, that is, difficulty in contracting the muscle fibers that are part of the endothelium (tissue that makes up the wall of blood vessels), which leads to a dilation or expansion of veins and arteries, thus generating a marked hypotension, this type of shock can be subclassified as septic, which is generated by inflammatory mediators that are fighting a pathogenic microorganism (virus, bacteria), or anaphylactic that is triggered by the presence of substances vasodilators secreted in response to allergens (substances that cause allergies); as well as it can also be presenting as an adverse effect against a drug.
