Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Altitude sickness, the mildest form being acute mountain sickness (AMS), is a harmful effect of high altitude, caused by rapid exposure to low amounts of oxygen at high elevation. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] People's bodies can respond to high altitude in different ways.
The primary recommendation for the prevention of HAPE is gradual ascent. [15] The suggested rate of ascent is the same that applies to the prevention of acute mountain sickness and high-altitude cerebral edema. The Wilderness Medical Society (WMS) recommends that, above 3,000 metres (9,800 ft), climbers
Very high altitude = 3,500–5,500 metres (11,500–18,000 ft) Extreme altitude = above 5,500 metres (18,000 ft) Travel to each of these altitude regions can lead to medical problems, from the mild symptoms of acute mountain sickness to the potentially fatal high-altitude pulmonary edema and high-altitude cerebral edema .
High-altitude cerebral edema (HACE) is a medical condition in which the brain swells with fluid because of the physiological effects of traveling to a high altitude. It generally appears in patients who have acute mountain sickness and involves disorientation, lethargy, and nausea among other symptoms.
A wilderness medical emergency is a medical emergency that takes place in a wilderness or remote setting affinitive care (hospital, clinic, etc.).Such an emergency can require specialized skills, treatment techniques, and knowledge in order to manage the patient for an extended period of time before and during evacuation.
At very high altitude, from 3,500 to 5,500 metres (11,500 to 18,000 ft) arterial oxygen saturation falls below 90% and arterial P O 2 is reduced to the extent that extreme hypoxemia may occur during exercise and sleep, and if high altitude pulmonary edema occurs. In this range severe altitude illness is common. [2]
Get AOL Mail for FREE! Manage your email like never before with travel, photo & document views. Personalize your inbox with themes & tabs. You've Got Mail!
Chronic mountain sickness (CMS) is a disease in which the proportion of blood volume that is occupied by red blood cells increases (polycythaemia) and there is an abnormally low level of oxygen in the blood . CMS typically develops after extended time living at high altitude (over 2,500 metres (8,200 ft)).