High-altitude flatus expulsion (HAFE) is a
gastrointestinal
The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The GI tract contains all the major organs of the digestive system, in humans and ...
syndrome which involves the spontaneous passage of increased quantities of
rectal gases
Flatulence, in humans, is the expulsion of gas from the intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swallowed environm ...
at high altitudes.
First described by Joseph Hamel in c. 1820 and occasionally described afterward.
[E.Y. Davis, FRCP(Ret), "Hafe In Nepal" West J Med. 1981 April; 134(4): 366, identifying "Flatulence Accompanying Rigorous Trekking," Kathmandu Medical Bulletin, 1972.] A landmark study of this phenomenon was published in 1981 by
Paul Auerbach
Paul Stuart Auerbach (January 4, 1951 – June 23, 2021) was an American physician and author in the academic discipline of wilderness medicine. He was the founder and past president of the Wilderness Medical Society. Auerbach was the editor ...
and York Miller.
The feeling of fullness or need to expel brought on by this differential in atmospheric pressure has been verified by studies involving military pilots subjected to pressure changes simulating flight.
See also
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High-altitude pulmonary edema
High-altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) is a life-threatening form of non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema that occurs in otherwise healthy people at altitudes typically above . However, cases have also been reported between in more vulnerable subjects.
...
*
High-altitude cerebral edema
High-altitude cerebral edema (HACE) is a medical condition in which the brain swells with fluid because of the physiological effects of traveling to a high altitude. It generally appears in patients who have acute mountain sickness and involves di ...
*
Flatulence
Flatulence, in humans, is the expulsion of gas from the intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swallowed environm ...
References
Mountaineering and health
Flatulence
Gastrointestinal tract disorders
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