Figures
- Fig. 1—
Arterial blood gas levels and cardiac frequency (fR) at rest at sea level, and during flight at cruising altitude (1,829 m) after 1 and 4 h: a) arterial oxygen tension (Pa,O2), b) arterial carbon dioxide tension (Pa,CO2), c) fR, and d) percutaneous oxygen saturation (Sp,O2). Data are presented as mean±sem. *: p<0.05; ***: p<0.001 versus sea level; #: p<0.05 versus in-flight value after 1 h.
- Fig. 2—
a) Percutaneous oxygen saturation (Sp,O2) and b) cardiac frequency (fR) at rest at sea level, and during flight at cruising altitude (1,829 m) during rest and exercise. Data are presented as mean±sem. *: p<0.05; ***: p<0.001 versus sea level; ###: p<0.001 versus in-flight value after 4 h at rest.
- Fig. 3—
In-flight Borg score at rest (□) and during exercise (▪).
- Fig. 4—
Correlation of arterial oxygen tension (Pa,O2) after 4 h of flight with a) aerobic capacity and b) Pa,O2 at sea level.
Tables
- Table. 1—
Demographics, lung function, arterial blood gas levels and aerobic capacity before flight#
Absolute value Relative value % pred Demographics Age yrs 60±7 (49–73) Height cm 174±10 (156–189) Weight kg 79±20 (46–120) Resting values FVC L 2.85±0.89 (1.45–4.55) 74±18 (49–107) FEV1 L 1.51±0.61 (0.65–2.64) 50±17 (18–78) TL,CO mmol·min-1·kPa-1 5.67±2.83 (2.00–11.22) 62±30 (25–106) Pa,O2,SL kPa 10.3±1.2 (8.6–12.1) Sp,O2,SL % 96±1 (94–98) Pa,CO2,SL kPa 5.0±0.4 (4.3–5.6) Exercise data Aerobic capacity¶ mL·min-1·kg-1 20.6±5.3 (13.8–34.8) Data are presented as mean±sd (range). % pred: percentage of the predicted value; FVC: forced vital capacity; FEV1: forced expiratory volume in one second; TL,CO: single-breath transfer factor of the lung for carbon monoxide; Pa,O2,SL: arterial oxygen tension at sea level; Sp,O2,SL: percutaneous oxygen saturation at sea level; Pa,CO2,SL: arterial carbon dioxide tension at sea level. #: n = 18, with the exception of aerobic capacity (n = 17); ¶: maximum oxygen consumption during treadmill exercise divided by weight.
