The Effects of Acetazolamide on Exercise Performance at Sea Level and in Hypoxic Environments: A Review.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review of 17 studies without formal systematic review or meta-analysis methodology reported
PubMed 30314664 · doi:10.1016/j.wem.2018.06.011
What was done
This review examined 17 peer-reviewed articles assessing the impact of acetazolamide, a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor used for acute mountain sickness prophylaxis, on submaximal and maximal exercise performance at sea level and at high altitude (>2500 m), along with its side-effect profile.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values or effect sizes. At sea level, acetazolamide consistently reduced time to exhaustion during both submaximal and maximal exercise. At altitude, findings across studies were highly variable, leaving the exact impact of acetazolamide on hypoxic exercise performance unresolved.
Why it matters
Although acetazolamide is commonly used to prevent acute mountain sickness, users should be aware that it impairs exercise performance at sea level and may not reliably preserve physical performance at altitude.
Limits
The abstract provides no quantitative data, effect sizes, or confidence intervals. Details regarding dosages, timing, participant demographics, exercise modalities, and search methodology are omitted, and existing altitude studies show high discordance.
Cited by
- partial Diamox (acetazolamide) causes mild metabolic acidosis and increases SpO2, but reliably reduces cognitive and physical performance.