Which oxygen level is associated with coma in 40 seconds, followed by death?

Which oxygen level is associated with coma in 40 seconds, followed by death?

• A. 6%
• B. 8-10%
• C. 10-12%
• D. 15-19%

Answer: (A)

Extremely low oxygen in the environment is what this item is testing. When ambient O2 falls to about 6%, the brain is starved of oxygen so quickly that consciousness is lost in roughly 40 seconds, and without a rapid return of oxygen, death follows. That rapid progression—coma in around 40 seconds and then death—matches the 6% level precisely. The higher percentages describe progressively less severe hypoxia, which would not produce coma so quickly. So the 6% oxygen level best fits the scenario described.

Extremely low oxygen in the environment is what this item is testing. When ambient O2 falls to about 6%, the brain is starved of oxygen so quickly that consciousness is lost in roughly 40 seconds, and without a rapid return of oxygen, death follows. That rapid progression—coma in around 40 seconds and then death—matches the 6% level precisely. The higher percentages describe progressively less severe hypoxia, which would not produce coma so quickly. So the 6% oxygen level best fits the scenario described.