Effect of High Altitude Exposure, Acclimatization and Re-exposure on Psychomotor Performance in Lowlanders

NCT ID: NCT02731456

Last Updated: 2018-04-25

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 18 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2016-03-01
• Study Completion Date: 2017-12-31

Brief Summary

Prospective interventional trial in lowlanders evaluating the effect of acute exposure, acclimatization and re-exposure to high altitude on psychomotor vigilance to measure sustained attention.

Detailed Description

Baseline measurements will be performed in Santiago de Chile, 520 m, over the course of 3 days. Participants will then travel by commercial airline (2 h flight) and by bus (2 h ride) to the ALMA base camp located at 2900 m near San Pedro de Atacama, northern Chile. Participants will stay there for the next 7 nights and they will spend the days (6 total; 6-8 h daily) at the telescope station at 5050 m while undergoing testing as described above at the first and the last day at 5050m. Daily transports from 2900 to 5050 m will be by car (1 h ride, one way). After the first 7 day altitude sojourn participants will return to the Santiago area (520 m) for a 7 day recovery period. A second altitude sojourn with an identical schedule as the one described above and a final low altitude stay of 3 days will follow.

Conditions

Effect of High Altitude

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: PREVENTION
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Altitude exposure

Acute high altitude exposure followed by 8 day acclimatization and re-exposure for 8 days after 6 days at low altitude.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

altitude exposure

Intervention Type: OTHER

altitude exposure

Interventions

altitude exposure

altitude exposure

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• born, raised and currently living <1300m
• No overnight stays at altitudes >1500m 4 weeks before the study

Exclusion Criteria

• previous altitude intolerance <3000m
• pregnancy
• health impairment, which requires regular treatment

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 40 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

University of Zurich

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Marc Poulin

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Marc Poulin

Professor

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Marc J Poulin, PhD, DPhil

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Calgary

Locations

University of Calgary

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Countries

Canada

Other Identifiers

REB15 - 2709_MOD1

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id