Hypoxia patients who survive past an acute life-threatening period usually show few immediate symptoms of long term damage. Instead, clinical manifestations such as mental deterioration, urinary and fecal incontinence, gait and speech distrubances, tremor and weakness are delayed for periods that may vary from days to weeks. Fortunately, the long term clinical prognosis is relatively good, with a majority of patients showing complete or near complete recovery from hypoxia within the first year. The hypoxia patient who does not suffer a mortal episode has a much better clinical prognosis than their counterpart who suffered a stroke. The answer resides in the fact that hypoxia does not involve dminished blood flow while stroke does.
Blood plays many roles in preserving tissue homeostasis in addition to the delivery of oxygen.
A prime example is the important role of blood in helping to regulate tissue pH. The happier fate of the hypoxia patient versus the stroke victim underscores the importance of blood flow above and beyond the delivery of oxygen.