More Top Picks Chalk Line
player ready...As people ascend to higher altitudes, their bodies go through some changes. Faster breathing, shortness of breath during exertion, increased urination and waking at night are to be expected, according to the Nepal-based Himalaya Rescue Association (HRA). But other symptoms may signal trouble. Altitude sickness occurs when the body fails to acclimate, or adjust, to higher altitudes, often when ascent has been too rapid. According to the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), based in Lander, Wyo., people who rapidly ascend above about 8,000 feet may experience acute mountain sickness. Symptoms include headache with loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting, swelling in the face and hands, sleep disturbances, or a bluish tint to the fingernails. These people should rest, drink lots of fluids and allow their bodies time to acclimate. If symptoms persist, they should descend.
Another condition is high altitude pulmonary edema. Fluid collects in the lungs. NOLS says symptoms include those listed above, shortness of breath, fatigue, a dry cough changing to a wet cough, and/or increased heart and respiratory rates. These people must descend immediately.
A third condition, high altitude cerebral edema, may become fatal in just a few hours, according to the HRA. The brain swells, thinking becomes confused and physical coordination degenerates. Such people should descend immediately.
Richard Dawood, M.D., author of “Travelers’ Health” (1994, Random House, $18), can’t say it enough: Gradual ascent is the key to preventing altitude sickness. And immediate descent, in the middle of the night if need be, is the safest first aid any layman can provide.