Age is no barrier to success at very high altitudes

摘要

SIR—As medical care improves and life expectancy continuesnto rise in most developed countries, older peoplenare able to enjoy high-altitude adventures later in life [1].nAll visitors to high altitude (>2,500 m) are at risk of illness,nnotably Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS), which is usually anself-limiting illness presenting between 6 and 12 h of arrivalnat altitude. Common features include headache, fatigue andnweakness, nausea and vomiting and poor sleep [2]. Despitenthe increased prevalence of pre-existing medical conditionsnwith age, the risk of AMS has been found to be lower in oldernpeople [3, 4]. More serious sequelae include high-altitudencerebral oedema and high-altitude pulmonary oedema thatncan be fatal if not recognised and treated promptly. Therenis an abundance of literature on AMS and altitude-relatednpathology [5–7]. However, there is little work specificallynon Mt Kilimanjaro with its unique ascent profile [8].