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AltitudeOmics: hemoglobin mass and blood volume changes during early acclimatization to and de‐acclimatization from 5260m (885.5)
Author(s) -
Ryan Benjamin,
Wachsmuth Nadine,
Schmidt Walter,
Byrnes William,
Lovering Andrew,
Subudhi Andrew,
Roach Robert
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.28.1_supplement.885.5
Subject(s) - hemoglobin , acclimatization , zoology , hematocrit , blood volume , chemistry , medicine , biology , botany
The early time course of changes in hemoglobin mass (Hbmass) and red cell volume (RCV) following ascent to and descent from altitudes greater than 5000m has not been previously determined in humans. We examined Hbmass and blood volume (BV) compartments in healthy men (n = 12) and women (n = 9) at sea level (SL) and 5260m following 1, 7, and 16 days of altitude exposure (ALT1/ALT7/ALT16). Subjects were also studied upon return to 5260m following descent to 1525m of either 7 or 21 days. Hbmass was assessed using the optimized CO rebreathing method. Compared to SL, absolute Hbmass was not different at ALT1 but increased by 3.7 ± 5.8% (n = 20; p < 0.01) at ALT7 and 7.6 ± 6.6% (n = 21; p < 0.001) at ALT16. Following descent to 1525m, Hbmass was reduced compared to ALT16 (‐6.0 ± 3.7%; n = 20; p = 0.001) and not different from SL, with no difference in the loss in Hbmass between groups that descended for 7 vs. 21 days. There was a large correlation between the loss in Hbmass and increase in serum ferritin following 7 days at 1525m (r = ‐0.64; n = 13; p < 0.05), suggesting increased red blood cell destruction. We found significant reductions in absolute and relative plasma volume (PV) of ~9‐12% at ALT7 and ALT16 compared to SL; PV returned to SL values following descent to 1525m. Relative BV was not different from SL at any time point due to opposing changes in PV and RCV. Our results demonstrate that large changes in Hbmass can occur within 1‐2 weeks in lowlanders during acclimatization to and de‐acclimatization from altitudes greater than 5000m. Grant Funding Source : Supported in part by DOD grants W81XWH‐11‐2‐0040 and W81XWH‐10‐2‐0114