Evaluation of Acute Mountain Sickness by Unsedated Transnasal Esophagogastroduodenoscopy at High Altitude.

Background & Aims: It is not clear how rapid ascent to a high altitude causes the gastrointestinal symptoms of acute mountain sickness (AMS). We assessed the incidence of endoscopic lesions in the upper gastrointestinal tract in healthy mountaineers after a rapid ascent to high altitude, their association with symptoms, and their pathogenic mechanisms.

Methods: In a prospective study, 25 mountaineers (10 women; mean age, 43.

Plasma copeptin levels and prediction of outcome in heart failure outpatients: relation to hyponatremia and loop diuretic doses.

Background: Copeptin, a stable fragment of the vasopressin prohormone, has been shown to be a significant biomarker for morbidity and mortality in heart failure. The aims of this study were to evaluate the influence of plasma sodium on the prognostic significance of copeptin concentrations in heart failure outpatients and to determine whether increased copeptin concentrations predict future development of hyponatremia.

Methods And Results: A total of 340 heart failure patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction were followed for 55 months (median) in a Danish heart failure clinic.