You are here: vision-research.eu » Vision Research » Vision in the European Focus » 2010 » THAO-Project: Tuebingen High Altitude Ophthalmology
High altitude is well known to induce a complex series of pathophysiological changes in humans and altitude related illnesses occur frequently in trekkers and mountaineers all around the world. Hypoxia, however, is also relevant in clinical practice as many widespread diseases such as diabetes mellitus or cardiovascular illnesses result in tissue hypoxia.
The functioning of the visual system is compromised at high altitude due to the hypoxic environment and many significant ophthalmological effects have been (more or less anecdotally) noted amongst high altitude enthusiasts. Although progress of understanding the pathophysiology has been made in recent years, it is of great importance to further characterize and investigate the effects of high altitude hypoxia using cutting edge technologies, equipment and to study the changes on a functional and quantitative basis.