The effect of sleep quality in Sherpani Col High Camp Everest

Recently, an increasingly higher volume of travelers deciding to get the experience of hiking to the highest summit worldwide has been noted. However, high altitude environments have adverse effects on the normal bodily function of individuals accustomed to living at low altitudes. The purpose of this study was to record sleep quality and physiological responses of 8 climbers during a 7 days stay at Sherpani Col High Camp Everest in an altitude of 5700-m. Eight experienced climbers (Age: 48 ± 9.2 yrs, Height: 176.3 ± 7.1 cm, Body mass: 76.9 ± 11.7 kg, weekly exercise >80% HR_max > 270 min^-1) participated in the study. The climbers recorded their sleep quality daily and one hour after waking up via a questionnaire (Groningen Sleep Quality Scale, GSQS), levels of perceived exertion (Borg CR10 Scale), heart rate (HR, bpm^-1) and oxygen saturation in blood (SpO₂, %) using the pulse oximeter Nonin Onyx Vantage 9590 (USA). Climbers also filled out questionnaires regarding how sleepy they felt (Epworth Sleepiness Score, ESS) 12 h post waking-up. Repeated measures ANOVA were used in order to examine possible variations between variables. Results showed statistical significant differences in the HR and SpO₂ parameters, (HR: 86.5 ± 5.2 bpm^-1, p < 0.05; SpO₂: 85.3 ± 2.4%, p < 0.05). The subjective evaluation of GSQS, ESS and perceived exertion using a Borg CR10 Scale may be affected by the extreme hypoxic environment and the daily hike-climb which results in low blood oxygen saturation.