Altitude sickness

[Chris71]

What's the lowest altitude a normal person can suffer with altitude sickness?

I ask because I've noticed problems when skiing: Very marked light-headedness up on the peaks (3,000+ metres) and a commically low tolerance to alcohol even at resort level (say, 1,600m). I noticed the same thing - particularly the latter - when I worked out there, but it settled down after a week or two and then I was fine.

The problem is, now as a punter I don't have a week to acclimatise. And while I can live with being T-total for a week, it's not great if your head's spinning and you're seeing stars at the top of a colouirs.

Are there any treatments or remedies you can recommend? ...Presumably aerobic fitness plays a part in this, for example? Can you get tablets or anything?

[ShadownINja]

Diamox may help but I don't know if you can get it as preventative. Could go into a local pharmacy or hospital when you get there and claim you've got splitting headaches.

I don't think you can improve it beyond acclimatising. You can be the fittest person in the world at sea level but get wiped out by it. An athlete can't tell until they get there.

[worley]

Generally anything above 2800m you can experience altitude sickness, although I get disturbed sleep around 2000m..

Best to keep hydrated and eat regularly, if things get bad take some asprine as a temporary relief.

More serious symptomns such as HAPE and HACE occur in a very small percentage of persons.

[Chris71]

worley said:

Generally anything above 2800m you can experience altitude sickness, although I get disturbed sleep around 2000m..

Best to keep hydrated and eat regularly, if things get bad take some asprine as a temporary relief.

More serious symptomns such as HAPE and HACE occur in a very small percentage of persons.

Dare I ask what HAPE and HACE are?

We got into resort really early during the last trip and, being determined to get on the snow before my lift pass came I started trudging up the hill with my skis on my shoulder. I felt quite ill after a couple of minutes climbing and that was only fractionally above the 2000m base station.

[The_Doc]

H high
A altitude
P pulmonary
C cerebral
E (o)edema

swelling/water on lungs or brain due to pressure changes of ambient environment


bad

treatment= descend

[worley]

At 2000m you should not have any problems if reasonably fit and take things easy.

There might be some underlying medical condition, but I'm not qualified to comment.

[ShadownINja]

The_Doc said:

H high
A altitude
P pulmonary
C cerebral
E (o)edema

swelling/water on lungs or brain due to pressure changes of ambient environment


bad

treatment= descend

Aye. In layman's terms, the brain expands and pushes itself down the bottom of the skull as that's the only opening available. Stings a bit. Can kill.

[Bill]

Chris71 said:

We got into resort really early during the last trip and, being determined to get on the snow before my lift pass came I started trudging up the hill with my skis on my shoulder. I felt quite ill after a couple of minutes climbing and that was only fractionally above the 2000m base station.

You can feel the effects of altitude quite low, but what you experienced wasn't altitude sickness as such just a combination of altitude and exercise (and quite possibly being more susceptible). I've had similar at about 3000m but have friends who struggle at lower altitudes initially.

It's probably worth choosing a lower (@1600m) resort so you sleep at an altitude you're definitely comfortable at, keeping hydrated and avoiding the booze.

I'm not a Dr (just a physio who climbs and skis) but I'd talk to your GP about anaemia too as that might explain the susceptibility.

[anonymous-user]

You start to 'feel' altitude before you get sick, look at some of the sports events around the world, in S Africa or Mexico, to see the effects. I get mild head aches from about 2000m for an hour then no problem and trouble sleeping for the first night at around the same, but not to say I have altitude sickness.
But you need to be carfull, it was the case that more people died of altitude sickness in the Alps than any other mountain range in the world, a result of unfit skiers, going high fast, people who are used to it/ born at high altitude don't suffer the same.
If you get real symptons of altitude sickness get down fast and get medical help, but while not a docter I wouldn't worry about mild head ache or initial mild breathless ness

[Chris71]

Berw said:

You start to 'feel' altitude before you get sick, look at some of the sports events around the world, in S Africa or Mexico, to see the effects. I get mild head aches from about 2000m for an hour then no problem and trouble sleeping for the first night at around the same, but not to say I have altitude sickness.
But you need to be carfull, it was the case that more people died of altitude sickness in the Alps than any other mountain range in the world, a result of unfit skiers, going high fast, people who are used to it/ born at high altitude don't suffer the same.
If you get real symptons of altitude sickness get down fast and get medical help, but while not a docter I wouldn't worry about mild head ache or initial mild breathless ness

It was the seeing stars that worried me! Difficult to tell being surrounded by snow, but at the top of the hill at Obergurgl (about 3000m) I seemed to be getting speckles in my vision.

The interesting thing was the way it seems to subside. Normally I react very badly to alcohol at altitude (by which I'm talking about a single glass of wine or something), but I found a few weeks into the season I did that cleared up and I was able to keep pace with the rest of the seasonaires. I'm not a big drinker so this doesn't really concern me, but it illustrates the changes that happen - even at resort level - as your body acclimatises.

I think it's St Anton or Merribel for this year, so that should make things easier. I'm just slightly cautious of these tales of people doing themselves real harm through exertion at altitude. I take it I'd get some suitably unambiguous warning signs before I give myself a brain haemorrhage or anything?