A team of Mayo Clinic researchers have found that hypoxia can be detected before incapacitating physical symptoms, which can be a safety threat at high altitudes.
“This study opens the door for objective assessments of hypoxia and additional safeguards for…pilots and others working in high altitudes,” says Jan Stepanek, M.D., the Aerospace Medicine Program Director and Co-Director of the Aerospace Medicine & Vestibular Research Laboratory.
Hypoxia is a lower than normal level of oxygen in your blood. To function properly, your body needs a certain level of oxygen circulating in the blood to cells and tissues. When this level of oxygen falls below a certain amount, hypoxia can cause a variety of symptoms, including shortness of breath, impaired speech, slowed reaction time and passing out.
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