Airmen helping researchers by living in the clouds

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Greg Hignite
  • Air Force Academy Public Affairs
PIKES PEAK, Colo. (AFPN) --  A handful of Air Force Academy Airmen are living in the clouds on the 14,110-foot Pikes Peak summit this summer as part of an Army/Air Force acclimatization research study.

The U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, based in Natick, Mass., and the academy’s Human Performance Laboratory teamed up to study the effects of taking 18 Airmen from moderate altitudes (6,500 feet) to high alpine environments (above 14,000 feet.).

About 100 yards from the summit visitor center and cog railway line sits the Army's Maher Memorial Altitude Laboratory. The unassuming facility, often overlooked by summit visitors, serves as a base of operations to conduct alpine research and house study volunteers.

The academy Airmen, 10 men and eight women, live on the summit for four consecutive days performing various cognitive and physical drills to gauge the impact of the elevation on motor skills and memory retention. The study began July 15 and ends July31.

Two years ago, Army researchers conducted a similar study, but took people from sea level to the summit of Pikes Peak. This year’s study will compare findings from the two study groups to determine if people from moderate altitudes acclimate faster or better to the alpine environment than people from sea level.

Typically, it takes people from sea level five to seven days to acclimate to the elevation, said Dr. Chuck Fulco, the lead scientist on the Army’s research team. The level of oxygen saturation in the air at 14,000 feet is dramatically reduced from that at sea level, which causes most people to acquire acute mountain sickness, he added.

Mountain sickness causes headaches, nausea and an all-around bad feeling that only gets better after the body adjusts to the lack of oxygen.

The sea-level study group participants were often sick for the first few days of the study and were only able to eat bland foods to avoid nausea, said the scientist.

While the study is still ongoing and the final results will not be available for a few months, the researchers are already noticing a surprising trend.

“What we're seeing is the severity of AMS is much less for the people from the academy and that they are feeling nearly normal, eating well and not losing body weight,” Dr. Fulco said.

The genesis of this study is loosely based on the military campaigns in Afghanistan. Nearly three years ago the military was actively engaged in ending the Taliban stranglehold on the country. Scientists noticed early on that troops in that region needed a few days to adjust to the higher elevations. To further compound the situation, many Soldiers and Airmen marched high into the Afghan mountains to hunt for Osama Bin Laden and call in air strikes, further enhancing AMS symptoms.

Dr. Fulco hopes to equip Army leaders with knowledge on how to better select troops for high-alpine operations. For example, it might make more sense to have troops live for some time at moderate elevations before being deployed because they will adapt to the higher elevation more rapidly.

Overall, this study is one piece of the puzzle to help military leaders make better decisions about putting troops in certain combat zones, Dr. Fulco said.

Each volunteer for the study needed to be between 18 to 35 years old, pass the annual Air Force physical fitness test, be a nonsmoker and a resident of Colorado Springs for at least the past three months. Airmen from various career fields and units around the base were invited to volunteer.

Along with spending four days on Pikes Peak, volunteers first had to complete an extensive test battery at the academy over a period of several days, according to Lt. Col. Michael Zupan, chief of the Human Performance Laboratory. Tests included an endurance bike ride of 45 minutes immediately followed by an 18-mile time trial ride.

On other days, volunteers had electrodes glued to their chest and rode with an oxygen-sensing mouthpiece during a V02 max bike test. These tests were then duplicated on the summit so that scientists could judge the impact of the altitude on the volunteers.

Colonel Zupan had more than enough Airmen to select from, winnowing a list of more than 30 individuals to the 18 taking part in the study. It was unique that there was so much interest, especially for a study that requires a lot of time and hard exercise, the colonel said.

Tests included both physical and mental challenges. Cognitive tests involved reaction time drills, memory skills and the eye vigilance exam, which was by far the most aggravating test to the volunteers, according to Capt. Leon Travis, an instructor with the 98th Flying Training Squadron. During the vigilance exam volunteers were asked to stare at a gray computer screen for 30 minutes and tap the space bar each time a tiny, light gray bar appeared on the screen.

“After awhile you start seeing things in the gray screen and wonder, ‘did I just miss that little bar?’” Capt. Travis said.

Physical tests revolved around riding a stationary bike from 20 minutes to three hours, depending on the test and the volunteer's physical prowess.

“The toughest part was definitely the bike ride on Day One at the summit,” said Capt. Travis. “For me it was three hours of exhaustion without pause. The pounding headache for the remainder of the day was my prize for finishing.”

To further complicate the exercise routine on the first and third days, volunteers had to struggle through an endurance cycle test with a catheter in their forearm. Every 15 minutes during the three-hour ride a medical technician would extract a few teaspoons of blood. The blood work was immediately analyzed to determine how the body responded to the exertion at altitude.

Despite the extensive time commitment, blood work and forced exercise while overcoming AMS, volunteers remained focused on the study.

“I have never had the opportunity to deploy,” said 1st Lt. Jacki Grant, an airfield operations flight commander. “I wanted to do something to help those troops on the front line.”

Before traveling up to the peak, Lieutenant Grant was nervous about how her body would handle the physical strain. Two days into the study she admits there were times she thought about quitting, but she remained focused on finishing the grueling bike rides.

“There were great people on the research team to keep me motivated. After all, I volunteered for this,” she said.

Despite hitting the gym regularly, Staff Sgt. Matt Bowen was caught off guard by the endurance bike ride on the summit the first day.

“It was a lot tougher than expected, I had no energy for the test and once it was over I was hit with AMS,” said Sergeant Bowen, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the cadet physical therapy clinic.

Fortunately for Sergeant Bowen and the other volunteers, the symptoms of AMS dramatically reduced by the second day and life on the peak became much easier.

Research data gathered this month will be available to all services to help better use fighting forces worldwide.