title: Chronic mountain sickness score was related with health status score but not with hemoglobin levels at high altitudes.
abstract: Chronic mountain sickness (CMS) or lack of adaptation to live in high altitudes is related to environmental hypoxia and excessive erythrocytosis (EE) (hemoglobin >21 and >19 g/dL for men and women, respectively). Diagnosis of CMS ("Qinghai CMS Score") is based on seven signs/symptoms (breathlessness and/or palpitations, sleep disturbance, cyanosis, dilatation of veins, paresthesia, headache, tinnitus) and the score for EE. The present study was designed to determine the association between hemoglobin, Qinghai CMS score, CMS clinical score (7 signs/symptoms) and Health Status using a health survey composed of 20 items. The rate of CMS (32.6%) was higher than the rate of EE (9.7%; P<0.002). A significant inverse relationship was observed between CMS clinical score and health status score (r=-0.56 for men, and r=-0.55 for women, P<0.01). However, CMS clinical score was not different in groups with different Hb levels. Health status score was significantly higher in subjects without CMS. In conclusion, elevated hemoglobin levels were not associated with elevated CMS clinical score.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones de la Altura, Faculty of Sciences and Philosophy, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Peru. gustavo.gonzales@upch.pe
authors.forename: Gustavo F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Gonzales
authors.forename: Julio
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rubio
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gasco
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000502:physiology*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000531:Altitude; D000532:Altitude Sickness / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D006454:Hemoglobins
keywords: Chronic hypoxia; Chronic mountain sickness; Excessive erythrocytosis; Gender; Peru