title: Ambulatory physiological status monitoring during a mountaineering expedition.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate an ambulatory physiological monitoring system during a mountaineering expedition. We hypothesized that the Environmental Symptoms Questionnaire, combined with frequent measurement of oxygen saturation and core temperature, would accurately identify cases of environmental illness.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twelve military mountaineers took a daily Environmental Symptoms Questionnaire, monitored fingertip oxygen saturations, and recorded core temperatures while climbing a 4,949-m peak. Illnesses identified by the system were compared with those identified by spontaneous reports.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The system correctly identified one case of high-altitude pulmonary edema and two illnesses that were not reported to the physician (one case of acute mountain sickness and one of self-limited symptomatic desaturation). However, it did not identify two illnesses that were severe enough to preclude further climbing (one case of sinus headache and one of generalized fatigue).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our monitoring system may complement, but cannot replace, on-site medical personnel during mountaineering expeditions.
authors.affiliation: Thermal and Mountain Medicine Division, U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Natick, MA 01760, USA.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Sonna
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Kain
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Hoyt
authors.forename: S R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Muza
authors.forename: M N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Sawka
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000532:Altitude Sickness / Q000175:diagnosis*; D001831:Body Temperature; D002170:Canada; D006801:Humans; D008889:Military Personnel; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic; D009051:Mountaineering / Q000502:physiology*; D010092:Oximetry; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States