High Altitude Medicine
Accute Mountain Sickness (AMS)
The common symptoms for AMS are:
- Headache.
- Nausea (feeling sick)
- Vomiting (being sick)
- Fatigue (feeling tired)
- Poor appetite (not hungry)
- Dizziness
- Sleep disturbance
It’s good if everyone logs how they feel while travelling and is honest with others in the group, especially the guides. Everyone can help make decisions - to go up, to have a rest day, or to go down. As a group, everyone’s health and happiness is equally important.
Hiding illness or pushing someone on could be fatal. Some people just seem to acclimatise slowly, and need to take things more gently. If you are unfit, it doesn’t mean you are more likely to suffer, but overdoing it might be risky. If you are unused to exercise, feeling tired while trekking is not surprising.
Similarly if you are sleeping in a tent every night and are not used to it, your sleep may be poor. The food may also be very different.
The most important thing is: are the symptoms getting better or worse?
If you think you are getting worse - walk down (at least 500 to 1,000m lower for sleeping). Give your body extra time to acclimatise. Don’t leave this decision until it’s too late. The drug acetazolamide (trade name Diamox) can be used to reduce the effects of AMS, useful where large height gains are unavoidable. It does have side effects, and some people can be allergic to it.
- Introduction
- Pre-Existing Conditions
- Acclimitization
- Effects of Altitude
- Accute Mountain Sickness
- Cereberal Oedema (HACE)
- Pulmonary Oedema (HAPE)