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Comparison of hypobaric hypoxia symptoms between a recalled exposure and a current exposure
- Source :
- PLoS ONE, Vol 15, Iss 9, p e0239194 (2020), PLoS ONE
- Publication Year :
- 2020
- Publisher :
- Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2020.
-
Abstract
- BackgroundAircrew members are required to attend hypoxia awareness training regularly to strengthen their memory of their personal hypoxia symptoms by undergoing training inside a hypobaric chamber. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hypoxia symptoms experienced during two training sessions that were 4 years apart.MethodsThis was a crossover study to compare hypoxia symptoms and self-reported physiological effects of trapped gas between a previous training session and a current training session in an altitude chamber. The subjects were military crew members who undertook a 25,000-feet refresher training course in 2018. We used a structured questionnaire to obtain the target information before and during hypoxia exposure. Data were analyzed using SPSS software.ResultsA total of 341 trainees participated in this survey and completely filled out the questionnaire. Gastrointestinal tract discomfort caused by the expansion of trapped gas was the main physiological reaction during the previous and current training sessions. Frequently reported symptoms were poor concentration (30.5%), impaired cognitive function (20.5%), visual disturbances (16.4%), hot flashes (15.8%), and paresthesia (12.6%) during both exposures. However, the proportions of participants reporting poor concentration (P = 0.378) and visual disturbances (P = 0.594) were not significantly different between the recalled and current training sessions. The five most common symptoms among the subjects with less than 1,000 flight hours were poor concentration (29.8%), visual disturbance (27.3%), impaired cognitive function (14.9%), dizziness/lightheadedness (11.6%), and hot flashes (9.9%), which overlapped substantially with the symptoms reported by other subjects. The occurrence of those five most common symptoms in the group with more than 1,000 flight hours did not significantly differ between the recalled training session and the current training session.ConclusionsThe most common hypoxia symptoms reported were similar between the recalled and current training sessions in an environment with a low oxygen concentration. This finding was also clearly affected by the duration of flight experience. Moreover, GI effects of the expansion of trapped gas were commonly observed at low atmospheric pressure.
- Subjects :
- Male
Lightheadedness
Pulmonology
Physiology
030310 physiology
Sensory Physiology
0211 other engineering and technologies
Crew
02 engineering and technology
Surveys and Questionnaires
Medicine and Health Sciences
Hypoxia
Visual Impairments
Cognitive Impairment
0303 health sciences
Multidisciplinary
Cross-Over Studies
Cognitive Neurology
Altitude
Cognition
Middle Aged
Chemistry
Professions
Atmospheric Pressure
Military Personnel
Neurology
Physical Sciences
Educational Status
Medicine
Female
medicine.symptom
Research Article
Chemical Elements
Adult
medicine.medical_specialty
Cognitive Neuroscience
Science
03 medical and health sciences
Medical Hypoxia
medicine
Humans
021110 strategic, defence & security studies
business.industry
Biology and Life Sciences
Cell Biology
Hypoxia (medical)
Crossover study
Trainees
Oxygen
Ophthalmology
Pilots
Hypobaric chamber
Mental Recall
People and Places
Physical therapy
Aerospace Medicine
Cognitive Science
Aircrew
Population Groupings
Aviation medicine
business
Neuroscience
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 19326203
- Volume :
- 15
- Issue :
- 9
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- PLoS ONE
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....c6bba70c12e5727f8a72c2e528068978