Mt Everest Base Camp Medical Clinic "Everest ER": epidemiology of medical events during the first 10 years of operation.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Retrospective case series without a comparison group
PubMed 25435349 · doi:10.1016/j.wem.2014.07.011
What was done
A retrospective analysis of all medical records from the Everest Base Camp Medical Clinic ("Everest ER") during its first 10 years of operation (2003 to 2012) was performed to characterize patient diagnoses and medical events in an extreme altitude environment.
What was found
Medical complaints accounted for 85.3% (3,045) of diagnoses, while trauma accounted for 14.0% (500). Pulmonary etiologies (such as high-altitude cough and upper respiratory infection) comprised more than 38% of medical diagnoses. Among traumatic diagnoses, dermatologic causes accounted for 56%, most commonly frostbite and lacerations. Pulmonary conditions (most commonly high-altitude pulmonary edema) and dermatologic conditions (most commonly frostbite) were the most frequent reasons for medical evacuation.
Why it matters
This 10-year audit provides baseline epidemiological data on the burden of disease at extreme altitude, highlighting that respiratory illnesses and cold injuries drive the majority of medical visits and emergency evacuations.
Limits
The study is a retrospective, single-center descriptive case series without a defined base population denominator, preventing calculation of true incidence or risk factors. Individual patient counts versus total diagnoses/encounters are not distinguished in the abstract, and clinical outcomes following evacuation are not described.
Cited by
- supports Dr. Luanne Freer founded the Everest ER medical clinic to provide care for climbers and high-altitude workers.