Researchers are going to great lengths—or rather, great
heights—to further their understanding of the heart, lungs and
brain. A team of Mayo Clinic scientists recently accompanied
climbers to Mount Everest to study the effects of high altitude.
And researchers from the University of Colorado, Denver, are
planning a high-altitude research trip to Bolivia with 24 study
participants. At high altitudes, the body's main challenge is
dealing with low oxygen levels in blood or tissue, as well as
lesser stresses involving diet, fluid, temperature and UV
exposure. For four weeks starting April 20, Mayo Clinic
researchers were in Nepal taking physiological measurements of
10 climbers' hearts and lungs, as well as conducting sleep
studies and cognitive performance tests on them. The climbers
spent six weeks at base camp, elevation 17,500 feet. The
researchers, arriving from Rochester, Minn., elevation 1,300
feet, conducted the same assessments on themselves to compare
results of those who had acclimatized with those who