Conditions: High Altitude Headache
Keywords: High Altitude Headache; intra-cranial pressure; hypoxia
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 23
Healthy volunteers: yes

Brief summary:
The purpose of this study is to determine whether increased pressure in the head is elevated in people who suffer from High Altitude Headache. We hypothesise that head pressure will be elevated in people with High Altitude Headache.

Detailed description:
High Altitude Headache is the primary symptom of Acute Mountain Sickness. However, at present the reason why some individuals suffer from High Altitude Headache and others do not remains unknown. It is widely believed that elevated pressure within the brain leads to stretching of pain sensitive fibres and thus headache. However, evidence of raised intracranial pressure during High Altitude Headache is currently unavailable. Therefore, this study aims to examine a proxy measure of intracranial pressure (Optic Nerve Sheath Diameter) in persons visiting High Altitude, half of whom have been given the drug acetazolamide that is known to reduce headache symptoms.

Arms:
arm 1: Arm 1: ACETAZOLAMIDE (250mg) will be given to subjects at fifteen, twenty and thirty two hours post hypoxic exposure (3777m). arm 2: Placebo (LACTOSE MONOHYDRATE) will be given to subjects at fifteen, twenty and thirty two hours post hypoxic exposure (3777m).

Interventions: intervention 1: Acetazolamide intervention 2: Lactose monohydrate
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: During a forty eight hour hypoxic exposure (3777m), subjects will be given either acetazolamide or placebo at hours fifteen, twenty and thirty two. intervention 2: During a forty eight hour hypoxic exposure (3777m), subjects will be given either acetazolamide or placebo at hours fifteen, twenty and thirty two.

Protocol document: