Hypoxia is diagnosed through measurements of oxygen saturation. Some examples of hypoxia conditions that may be diagnosed include peripheral vascular disease, multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, ischemia, hypotension, and arteriosclerosis. In a specific implementation, a hypoxia condition is diagnosed based on changes in oxygen saturation in tissue. Ischemia is induced, and then measurements of changes in oxygen saturation in tissue are made. Based on changes in oxygen saturation, a diagnosis is provided of whether a patient has or does not have a hypoxia condition.