Evaluating the Utility of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure in the Treatment of High Altitude Pulmonary Edema

Summary

The primary objective is to evaluate the efficacy of continuous positive pressure on resolution of high-altitude pulmonary edema vs high flow oxygen. The secondary objective is to derive an incidence of high-altitude pulmonary edema based on the elevation and timing from which the subject arrives. Additionally, in a convenience sample of the base study population, an ultrasound evaluation for the presence of B lines in the lungs will be conducted after 2 hours.

Timeline

Start

2020-01-20

Primary completion

2023-09-13

Completion

2023-09-13

Publications

• Background Murdoch DR. Prevention and Treatment of High-altitude Illness in Travelers. Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2004 Feb;6(1):43-49. doi: 10.1007/s11908-004-0023-4.
• Background Gonzalez Garay A, Molano Franco D, Nieto Estrada VH, Marti-Carvajal AJ, Arevalo-Rodriguez I. Interventions for preventing high altitude illness: Part 2. Less commonly-used drugs. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018 Mar 12;3(3):CD012983. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012983.
• Background Basnyat B, Murdoch DR. High-altitude illness. Lancet. 2003 Jun 7;361(9373):1967-74. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(03)13591-X.
• Background Gallagher SA, Hackett PH. High-altitude illness. Emerg Med Clin North Am. 2004 May;22(2):329-55, viii. doi: 10.1016/j.emc.2004.02.001.
• Background Nieto Estrada VH, Molano Franco D, Medina RD, Gonzalez Garay AG, Marti-Carvajal AJ, Arevalo-Rodriguez I. Interventions for preventing high altitude illness: Part 1. Commonly-used classes of drugs. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 Jun 27;6(6):CD009761. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD009761.pub2.
• Background Stoltzfus S. The role of noninvasive ventilation: CPAP and BiPAP in the treatment of congestive heart failure. Dimens Crit Care Nurs. 2006 Mar-Apr;25(2):66-70. doi: 10.1097/00003465-200603000-00006.
• Background Luks AM, Auerbach PS, Freer L, Grissom CK, Keyes LE, McIntosh SE, Rodway GW, Schoene RB, Zafren K, Hackett PH. Wilderness Medical Society Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Acute Altitude Illness: 2019 Update. Wilderness Environ Med. 2019 Dec;30(4S):S3-S18. doi: 10.1016/j.wem.2019.04.006. Epub 2019 Jun 24.
• Background Johnson PL, Johnson CC, Poudyal P, Regmi N, Walmsley MA, Basnyat B. Continuous positive airway pressure treatment for acute mountain sickness at 4240 m in the Nepal Himalaya. High Alt Med Biol. 2013 Sep;14(3):230-3. doi: 10.1089/ham.2013.1015.
• Background Hebert PC, Stanbrook M. Indication creep: physician beware. CMAJ. 2007 Sep 25;177(7):697, 699. doi: 10.1503/cmaj.071223. Epub 2007 Sep 5. No abstract available.
• Background Walmsley M. Continuous positive airway pressure as adjunct treatment of acute altitude illness. High Alt Med Biol. 2013 Dec;14(4):405-7. doi: 10.1089/ham.2013.1059.
• Bolotin T, Subedi S, Dahal S, Walker C, Chung K, Martz A, Gemmel D, Chopra Q, Donley C. High Altitude Pulmonary Edema Response to Continuous Airway Positive Pressure: A Randomized Controlled Trial: The HAPER CAPER Trial. Acad Emerg Med. 2025 Nov;32(11):1215-1223. doi: 10.1111/acem.70126. Epub 2025 Sep 12.

Drugs

Indications