1. Fulminant high altitude blindness
- Author
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Pavel Ryzhkov, Piotr Szawarski, Tomaz Goslar, Evgeny Mashkovskiy, and Irena Mrak
- Subjects
Adult ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Pediatrics ,Fulminant ,Brain Edema ,Altitude Sickness ,Blindness ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Altitude ,Nepal ,Risk Factors ,medicine ,Humans ,Organ system ,Altitude sickness ,business.industry ,030208 emergency & critical care medicine ,General Medicine ,Effects of high altitude on humans ,medicine.disease ,Surgery ,Mountaineering ,Acute Disease ,030221 ophthalmology & optometry ,Optic nerve ,Female ,business ,High-altitude cerebral edema - Abstract
Prolonged altitude exposure even with acclimatization continues to present a physiological challenge to all organ systems including the central nervous system. We describe a case of a 41-year-old Caucasian female climber who suffered severe visual loss that was due to possible optic nerve pathology occurring during a high altitude expedition in the Himalayas. This case is atypical of classic high altitude cerebral oedema and highlights yet another danger of prolonged sojourn at extreme altitudes.
- Published
- 2016