Watch out for blood pressure in the high mountains. “Recent studies by the Italian Auxologico Institute and the University of Milan-Bicocca have clearly demonstrated how blood pressure increases significantly during exposure to high altitudes (above 2,500 meters), starting to change even at altitudes around 1,800-2,000 meters”. An increase experienced by both healthy people and those who already suffer from high blood pressure, warns Auxologico in view of the High Blood Pressure Day in Mountain Huts.
To raise awareness among mountain lovers about the side effects of climbing to high altitudes, and the importance of maintaining controlled blood pressure to protect cardiovascular health, the awareness campaign promoted by the Italian Alpine Club (CAI), the Italian Society of Arterial Hypertension (SIIA) and the Italian Society of Mountain Medicine (SIMEM) is back, with the organizational support of the Istituto Auxologico Italiano in Milan and UniMiB. The initiative will involve 50 CAI Alpine and Apennine refuges in 14 regions between 6 July and 10 August. In most refuges the appointment is for Sunday 14 July (the complete list with the relative dates is available online at www.cai.it/organo_tecnico/commissione-centrale-medica). Visitors will be able to undergo various tests and answer anonymously to a questionnaire useful for research purposes.
According to the Ministry of Health, it is estimated that about 18% of Italians suffer from high blood pressure, with a prevalence that progressively increases with age until it exceeds 50% after the age of 74. A large hidden share must then be added, because too many hypertensives are still unaware of their condition. It is no coincidence that high blood pressure is called “‘the silent killer’ due to its asymptomatic nature”, the experts at Auxologico recall. It is “still the main risk factor for cardiovascular disease and death worldwide”, therefore “to prevent cardiac and cerebral events that are often fatal or disabling, we must pay greater attention to the behavior of blood pressure in various conditions of our daily lives”. Even on vacation, especially in the mountains.
The awareness and prevention campaign ‘Blood pressure in the mountains’, Auxologico explains, therefore aims to “promote awareness of the cardiovascular system’s reactions at moderate and high altitudes among the many people with or without cardiovascular problems who, especially in summer, go up to the mountains”. But the goal is also to “carry out a simple but important collection of data for scientific research on the behavior of blood pressure in the mountains and on the individual cardiovascular risk profile among hikers”. To this end, in the refuges participating in the initiative “station(s) have been identified where hikers can receive information on the relationship between blood pressure and the mountains, measure blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen saturation in the blood, and fill out a short questionnaire. Not only by contributing to scientific research (anonymously), but also by checking their cardiovascular situation and their reaction to exposure to moderate or high altitudes in a simple and rapid way”.
“This initiative was born thanks to the joint effort of Siia, Simem and the Central Medical Commission of the CAI and has been successfully tested in some Alpine and Apennine refuges since 2016. The initiative fully reflects the main mission of the promoting organizations: to increase everyone’s awareness of the risks associated with hypertension and promote safety in the mountains”, declared Gianfranco Parati, former president of Siia; Maria Lorenza Muiesan, president of Siia; Carla D’Angelo, president of the Central Medical Commission of the CAI, and Giacomo Strapazzon, president of Simem. Parati, scientific director of Auxologico and elected president of the World League against Hypertension, also this year intends to “spread this Italian initiative throughout the world, as an example of a simple but effective activity to increase our awareness of the prevention of cardiovascular diseases”.
“The number of people who frequent the mountains during the summer has been constantly growing for several years – observes the general vice president of the CAI, Laura Colombo – This day therefore takes on an increasing importance, edition after edition, to spread awareness on the reactions of the cardiovascular system at moderate and high altitudes, and to consequently promote the frequentation of mountain territories in reasonable safety”. D’Angelo highlights that “the information collected on this occasion is an exclusive in this sector, given the high number of members recorded in recent years. With this day, the CAI intends to send an important message to all mountain frequenters on the importance of protecting one’s health and prevention”.
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