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November 23, 1984, Vol 252, No. 20 >
ARTICLE | November 23, 1984

Arterial O2 Saturation and Maximum O2 Consumption in Moderate-Altitude Runners Exposed to Sea Level and 3,050 m FREE

Alan Tucker, PhD; Joel M. Stager, PhD; Loren Cordain, PhD
[+] Author Affiliations

Reprint requests to Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Fort Collins, CO 80523 (Dr Tucker).


JAMA. 1984;252(20):2867-2871. doi:10.1001/jama.1984.03350200053024
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Article
References

Twelve trained runners, who were moderate-altitude (1,520 m) residents, were acutely exposed to sea level and 3,050-m altitude in a hypo-hyperbaric chamber. At 1,520 m, maximum O2 consumption (V̇o2max) was 67.7±0.9 mL/kg/min, minute ventilation (V) at maximum exercise was 169.8 ± 4.6 L/min, and arterial O2 saturation (Sao2) decreased from 93.3% ±0.9% at rest, to 84.5% ±1.6% at maximum exercise. Exposure to 3,050 m produced a lower Vo2max (56.5±1.5, —16.5%), a similar V̇ at maximum exercise (169.9 ± 6.0), and a similar fall in Sao2 (from 89.1%±0.8% to 79.5%±0.8%). Exposure to sea level increased V̇o2max to 72.4±1.4 (+6.9%), reduced V̇ at maximum exercise to 158.8 ±6.5, and induced a smaller fall in Sao2 (from 96.9% ±0.4% to 92.1%± 1.0%). These changes are comparable with those reported previously in athletes at sea level exposed to similar altitudes, suggesting that residence at 1,520 m does not improve V̇o2max in highly trained athletes acutely exposed to lower or higher altitudes.

(JAMA 1984;252:2867-2871)

REFERENCES

1 +
Balke B:  Work capacity and its limiting factors at high altitude , in Weihe WH (ed): The Physiological Effects of High Altitude . New York, Macmillan Publishing Co Inc, 1964;, pp 233-240.
2 +
Pugh LGCE, Gill MB, Lahiri S, et al:  Muscular exercise at great altitudes . J Appl Physiol 1964;;19:421-440.
3 +
Dill DB, Myhre LG, Brown DK, et al:  Work capacity in acute exposure to altitude . J Appl Physiol 1966;;21:1168-1176.
4 +
Buskirk ER, Kollias J, Akers RF, et al:  Maximal performance at altitude and on return from altitude in conditioned runners . J Appl Physiol 1967;;23:259-266.
5 +
Saltin B, Grover RF, Blomquist CG, et al:  Maximal oxygen uptake and cardiac output after two weeks at 4,300 m . J Appl Physiol 1968;; 25:400-409.
6 +
Dill DB, Adams WC:  Maximal oxygen uptake at sea level and at 3090-m altitude in high school champion runners . J Appl Physiol 1971;;30:854-859.
7 +
Buskirk ER, Kollias J, Picon-Reategui E, et al:  Physiology and performance of track athletes at various altitudes in the United States and Peru , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 65-71.
8 +
Cerretelli P, Bordoni U, Debijadi R, et al:  Respiratory and circulatory factors affecting the maximal aerobic power in hypoxia . Arch Fisiol 1967;;65:344-347.
9 +
Faulkner JA, Kollias J, Favour CB, et al:  Maximum aerobic capacity and running performance at altitude . J Appl Physiol 1968;;24:685-691.
10 +
Squires RW, Buskirk ER:  Aerobic capacity during acute exposure to simulated altitude: 914 to 2,286 meters . Med Sci Sports Exerc 1982;; 14:36-40.
11 +
Grover RF, Reeves JT, Grover EB, et al:  Muscular exercise in young men native to 3,100 m altitude . J Appl Physiol 1967;;22:555-564.
12 +
Maresh CM, Noble BJ, Robertson KL, et al:  Maximal exercise during hypobaric hypoxia (447 torr) in moderate-altitude natives . Med Sci Sports Exerc 1983;;15:360-365.
13 +
Dempsey JA, Hanson PE, Mastenbrook SM:  Arterial hypoxemia during heavy exercise in highly trained runners , abstracted. Fed Proc 1981;;40:396.
14 +
West JB, Lahiri S, Gill MB, et al:  Arterial oxygen saturation during exercise at high altitude . J Appl Physiol 1962;;17:617-621.
15 +
Penaloza D, Sime F, Banchero N, et al:  Pulmonary hypertension in healthy man born and living at high altitudes . Med Thorac 1962;; 19:449-460.
16 +
Vogel JHK, Weaver WF, Rose RL, et al:  Pulmonary hypertension on exertion in normal man living at 10,150 feet (Leadville, Colorado) . Med Thorac 1962;;19:461-477.
17 +
Buhlmann A, Hofstetter JR:  Arbeitsversuche in mittleren hohen . Helv Physiol Pharmacol Acta 1951;;9:222-226.
18 +
Houston CS, Riley RL:  Respiratory and circulatory changes during acclimatization to high altitude . Am J Physiol 1947;;149:565-588.
19 +
Pugh LGCE:  Cardiac output in muscular exercise at 5,800 m (19,000 ft) . J Appl Physiol 1964;;19:441-447.
20 +
Cordain L, Johnson SC, Ruhling RD:  Description of a low cost microcomputer system interfaced to exercise stress testing equipment . Res Quart Exerc Sport 1982;;53:73-77.
21 +
Wilmore JH, Vodak PA, Parr RB, et al:  Further simplification of a method for determination of residual lung volume . Med Sci Sports Exerc 1980;;12:216-218.
22 +
Goldman HI, Becklake MR:  Respiratory function tests: Normal values at median altitudes and the prediction of normal results . Am Rev Tuberculosis 1959;;79:457-467.
23 +
Morris JF, Koski A, Johnson LC:  Spirometric standards for healthy nonsmoking adults . Am Rev Respir Dis 1971;;103:57-67.
24 +
Cherniack RM, Raber MD:  Normal standards for ventilatory function using an automated wedge spirometer . Am Rev Respir Dis 1972;;106:38-46.
25 +
Consolazio CF:  Submaximal and maximal performance at high altitude , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 91-95.
26 +
Elliott PR, Atterbom HA:  Comparison of exercise responses of males and females during acute exposure to hypobaria . Aviat Space Environ Med 1978;;49:415-418.
27 +
Saltin B:  Aerobic and anaerobic work capacity at an altitude of 2,250 meters , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 97-101.
28 +
Pugh LGCE:  Athletes at altitude . J Physiol 1967;;192:619-646.
29 +
Reeves JT, Grover RF, Cohn JE:  Regulation of ventilation during exercise at 10,200 ft in athletes born at low altitude . J Appl Physiol 1967;;22:546-554.
30 +
Grover RF, Reeves JT:  Exercise performance of athletes at sea level and 3,100 meters altitude , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 80-85.
31 +
Daniels J, Oldridge N:  The effects of alternate exposure to altitude and sea level on world-class middle-distance runners . Med Sci Sports 1970;;2:107-112.
32 +
Greenleaf JE, Bernauer EM, Adams WC, et al:  Fluid-electrolyte shifts and V̇o2max in man at simulated altitude (2,287 m) . J Appl Physiol 1978;;44:652-658.
33 +
Balke B, Nagle FJ, Daniels J:  Altitude and maximum performance in work and sports activity . JAMA 1965;;194:176-179.
34 +
Hansen JE, Vogel JA, Stelter GP, et al:  Oxygen uptake in man during exhaustive work at sea level and high altitude . J Appl Physiol 1967;;23:511-522.
35 +
Klausen K, Dill DB, Horvath SM:  Exercise at ambient and high oxygen pressure at high altitude and at sea level . J Appl Physiol 1970;; 29:456-463.
36 +
Horstman DH, Weiskopf R, Robinson S:  The nature of the perception of effort at sea level and high altitude . Med Sci Sports 1979;;11:150-154.
37 +
Vogel JA, Hartley LH, Cruz JC, et al:  Cardiac output during exercise in sea-level residents at sea level and high altitude . J Appl Physiol 1974;;36:169-172.
38 +
Dempsey JA, Reddan WG, Birnbaum ML, et al:  Effects of acute through life-long hypoxic exposure on exercise pulmonary gas exchange . Respir Physiol 1971;;13:62-89.
39 +
Horstman D, Weiskopf R, Jackson RE:  Work capacity during 3-wk sojourn at 4,300 m: Effects of relative polycythemia . J Appl Physiol 1980;;49:311-318.
40 +
Rowell LB, Taylor HL, Wang Y, et al:  Saturation of arterial blood with oxygen during maximal exercise . J Appl Physiol 1964;;19:284-286.
41 +
Reeves JT, Halpin J, Cohn JE, et al:  Increased alveolar-arterial oxygen difference during simulated high-altitude exposure . J Appl Physiol 1969;;27:658-661.
42 +
Wyndham CH, Strydom NB, van Rensburg AJ, et al:  Effects on maximal oxygen intake of acute changes in altitude in a deep mine . J Appl Physiol 1970;;29:552-555.
43 +
Wyndham CH, Kok R, Strydom NB, et al:  Physiological effects of acute changes in altitude in a deep mine . J Appl Physiol 1971;;30:232-237.
44 +
Boutellier U, Marconi C, diPrampero PE, et al:  Effects of chronic hypoxia on maximal performance . Bull Eur Physiopathol Respir 1982;; 18( (suppl 4) ):39-44.
45 +
Faulkner JA, Daniels JT, Balke B:  Effects of training at moderate altitude on physical performance capacity . J Appl Physiol 1967;;23:85-89.
46 +
Adams WC, Bernauer EM, Dill DB, et al:  Effects of equivalent sea-level and altitude training on V̇o2max and running performance . J Appl Physiol 1975;;39:262-266.
47 +
Saksena F, Manchanda SC, Roy SV:  Reduced physical work capacity at high altitude: A role for left ventricular disfunction . Int J Cardiol 1981;;1:197-204.
48 +
Sen Gupta J, Joseph NT, Malhotra MS:  Physical fitness status and adaptation to high altitude . Indian J Med Res 1978;;68:312-321.
49 +
Ekblom B, Huot R, Stein EM, et al:  Effects of changes in arterial oxygen content on circulation and physical performance . J Appl Physiol 1975;;39:71-75.

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Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature

Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal

1 +
Balke B:  Work capacity and its limiting factors at high altitude , in Weihe WH (ed): The Physiological Effects of High Altitude . New York, Macmillan Publishing Co Inc, 1964;, pp 233-240.
2 +
Pugh LGCE, Gill MB, Lahiri S, et al:  Muscular exercise at great altitudes . J Appl Physiol 1964;;19:421-440.
3 +
Dill DB, Myhre LG, Brown DK, et al:  Work capacity in acute exposure to altitude . J Appl Physiol 1966;;21:1168-1176.
4 +
Buskirk ER, Kollias J, Akers RF, et al:  Maximal performance at altitude and on return from altitude in conditioned runners . J Appl Physiol 1967;;23:259-266.
5 +
Saltin B, Grover RF, Blomquist CG, et al:  Maximal oxygen uptake and cardiac output after two weeks at 4,300 m . J Appl Physiol 1968;; 25:400-409.
6 +
Dill DB, Adams WC:  Maximal oxygen uptake at sea level and at 3090-m altitude in high school champion runners . J Appl Physiol 1971;;30:854-859.
7 +
Buskirk ER, Kollias J, Picon-Reategui E, et al:  Physiology and performance of track athletes at various altitudes in the United States and Peru , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 65-71.
8 +
Cerretelli P, Bordoni U, Debijadi R, et al:  Respiratory and circulatory factors affecting the maximal aerobic power in hypoxia . Arch Fisiol 1967;;65:344-347.
9 +
Faulkner JA, Kollias J, Favour CB, et al:  Maximum aerobic capacity and running performance at altitude . J Appl Physiol 1968;;24:685-691.
10 +
Squires RW, Buskirk ER:  Aerobic capacity during acute exposure to simulated altitude: 914 to 2,286 meters . Med Sci Sports Exerc 1982;; 14:36-40.
11 +
Grover RF, Reeves JT, Grover EB, et al:  Muscular exercise in young men native to 3,100 m altitude . J Appl Physiol 1967;;22:555-564.
12 +
Maresh CM, Noble BJ, Robertson KL, et al:  Maximal exercise during hypobaric hypoxia (447 torr) in moderate-altitude natives . Med Sci Sports Exerc 1983;;15:360-365.
13 +
Dempsey JA, Hanson PE, Mastenbrook SM:  Arterial hypoxemia during heavy exercise in highly trained runners , abstracted. Fed Proc 1981;;40:396.
14 +
West JB, Lahiri S, Gill MB, et al:  Arterial oxygen saturation during exercise at high altitude . J Appl Physiol 1962;;17:617-621.
15 +
Penaloza D, Sime F, Banchero N, et al:  Pulmonary hypertension in healthy man born and living at high altitudes . Med Thorac 1962;; 19:449-460.
16 +
Vogel JHK, Weaver WF, Rose RL, et al:  Pulmonary hypertension on exertion in normal man living at 10,150 feet (Leadville, Colorado) . Med Thorac 1962;;19:461-477.
17 +
Buhlmann A, Hofstetter JR:  Arbeitsversuche in mittleren hohen . Helv Physiol Pharmacol Acta 1951;;9:222-226.
18 +
Houston CS, Riley RL:  Respiratory and circulatory changes during acclimatization to high altitude . Am J Physiol 1947;;149:565-588.
19 +
Pugh LGCE:  Cardiac output in muscular exercise at 5,800 m (19,000 ft) . J Appl Physiol 1964;;19:441-447.
20 +
Cordain L, Johnson SC, Ruhling RD:  Description of a low cost microcomputer system interfaced to exercise stress testing equipment . Res Quart Exerc Sport 1982;;53:73-77.
21 +
Wilmore JH, Vodak PA, Parr RB, et al:  Further simplification of a method for determination of residual lung volume . Med Sci Sports Exerc 1980;;12:216-218.
22 +
Goldman HI, Becklake MR:  Respiratory function tests: Normal values at median altitudes and the prediction of normal results . Am Rev Tuberculosis 1959;;79:457-467.
23 +
Morris JF, Koski A, Johnson LC:  Spirometric standards for healthy nonsmoking adults . Am Rev Respir Dis 1971;;103:57-67.
24 +
Cherniack RM, Raber MD:  Normal standards for ventilatory function using an automated wedge spirometer . Am Rev Respir Dis 1972;;106:38-46.
25 +
Consolazio CF:  Submaximal and maximal performance at high altitude , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 91-95.
26 +
Elliott PR, Atterbom HA:  Comparison of exercise responses of males and females during acute exposure to hypobaria . Aviat Space Environ Med 1978;;49:415-418.
27 +
Saltin B:  Aerobic and anaerobic work capacity at an altitude of 2,250 meters , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 97-101.
28 +
Pugh LGCE:  Athletes at altitude . J Physiol 1967;;192:619-646.
29 +
Reeves JT, Grover RF, Cohn JE:  Regulation of ventilation during exercise at 10,200 ft in athletes born at low altitude . J Appl Physiol 1967;;22:546-554.
30 +
Grover RF, Reeves JT:  Exercise performance of athletes at sea level and 3,100 meters altitude , in Goddard RF (ed): The Effects of Altitude on Physical Performance . Chicago, Athletic Institute, 1967;, pp 80-85.
31 +
Daniels J, Oldridge N:  The effects of alternate exposure to altitude and sea level on world-class middle-distance runners . Med Sci Sports 1970;;2:107-112.
32 +
Greenleaf JE, Bernauer EM, Adams WC, et al:  Fluid-electrolyte shifts and V̇o2max in man at simulated altitude (2,287 m) . J Appl Physiol 1978;;44:652-658.
33 +
Balke B, Nagle FJ, Daniels J:  Altitude and maximum performance in work and sports activity . JAMA 1965;;194:176-179.
34 +
Hansen JE, Vogel JA, Stelter GP, et al:  Oxygen uptake in man during exhaustive work at sea level and high altitude . J Appl Physiol 1967;;23:511-522.
35 +
Klausen K, Dill DB, Horvath SM:  Exercise at ambient and high oxygen pressure at high altitude and at sea level . J Appl Physiol 1970;; 29:456-463.
36 +
Horstman DH, Weiskopf R, Robinson S:  The nature of the perception of effort at sea level and high altitude . Med Sci Sports 1979;;11:150-154.
37 +
Vogel JA, Hartley LH, Cruz JC, et al:  Cardiac output during exercise in sea-level residents at sea level and high altitude . J Appl Physiol 1974;;36:169-172.
38 +
Dempsey JA, Reddan WG, Birnbaum ML, et al:  Effects of acute through life-long hypoxic exposure on exercise pulmonary gas exchange . Respir Physiol 1971;;13:62-89.
39 +
Horstman D, Weiskopf R, Jackson RE:  Work capacity during 3-wk sojourn at 4,300 m: Effects of relative polycythemia . J Appl Physiol 1980;;49:311-318.
40 +
Rowell LB, Taylor HL, Wang Y, et al:  Saturation of arterial blood with oxygen during maximal exercise . J Appl Physiol 1964;;19:284-286.
41 +
Reeves JT, Halpin J, Cohn JE, et al:  Increased alveolar-arterial oxygen difference during simulated high-altitude exposure . J Appl Physiol 1969;;27:658-661.
42 +
Wyndham CH, Strydom NB, van Rensburg AJ, et al:  Effects on maximal oxygen intake of acute changes in altitude in a deep mine . J Appl Physiol 1970;;29:552-555.
43 +
Wyndham CH, Kok R, Strydom NB, et al:  Physiological effects of acute changes in altitude in a deep mine . J Appl Physiol 1971;;30:232-237.
44 +
Boutellier U, Marconi C, diPrampero PE, et al:  Effects of chronic hypoxia on maximal performance . Bull Eur Physiopathol Respir 1982;; 18( (suppl 4) ):39-44.
45 +
Faulkner JA, Daniels JT, Balke B:  Effects of training at moderate altitude on physical performance capacity . J Appl Physiol 1967;;23:85-89.
46 +
Adams WC, Bernauer EM, Dill DB, et al:  Effects of equivalent sea-level and altitude training on V̇o2max and running performance . J Appl Physiol 1975;;39:262-266.
47 +
Saksena F, Manchanda SC, Roy SV:  Reduced physical work capacity at high altitude: A role for left ventricular disfunction . Int J Cardiol 1981;;1:197-204.
48 +
Sen Gupta J, Joseph NT, Malhotra MS:  Physical fitness status and adaptation to high altitude . Indian J Med Res 1978;;68:312-321.
49 +
Ekblom B, Huot R, Stein EM, et al:  Effects of changes in arterial oxygen content on circulation and physical performance . J Appl Physiol 1975;;39:71-75.

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