Oxygen Deficit

oxygen deficit [′äk·sə·jən ‚def·ə·sət]

(geochemistry)

The difference between the actual amount of dissolved oxygen in lake or sea water and the saturation concentration at the temperature of the water mass sampled.

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Oxygen Deficit 

oxygen debt, the additional amount of oxygen required by the body to oxidize the incompletely oxidized metabolic products that have accumulated after physical exertion.

Oxygen deficit is evidence that oxygen intake has failed to keep pace with the body’s need for oxygen during work. Determination of the oxygen deficit, by studying gas exchange, is important in solving certain questions of the physiology of work and sport. It is also important in evaluating the condition of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. The term “oxygen deficit” is sometimes taken to mean the difference between the body’s need for oxygen and the amount that it actually consumes under a variety of circumstances (oxygen deficiency, or hypoxia).