Can a week at sea level ease the strain of High-Altitude heart disease?

NCT ID NCT07804472

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: Silvia Ulrich Somaini Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Sep 04, 2026 · Last updated Sep 04, 2026

Summary

Researchers are testing whether a one-week stay at sea level improves walking ability and blood oxygen in people with pulmonary arterial hypertension who live permanently above 2600 meters. The study compares these patients with healthy controls from the same altitude, measuring exercise capacity, oxygen levels, and sleep breathing before, during, and after the descent. The goal is to understand how short-term altitude changes affect the heart and lungs in this condition.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: Descent from high altitude (2850m) to sea level for 7 days
What this could lead to: If a week at sea level improves walking distance and oxygen levels, it could point toward periodic low-altitude stays as a supportive strategy for people with pulmonary arterial hypertension living at high altitude.
What could go wrong: This is a small, early observational study with only 20 participants, so results may not apply broadly. The benefits of a short descent may fade quickly after returning to altitude, and the trial does not test a drug or long-term treatment.

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Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 20 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Expected to start

Sep 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

Dec 2026

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 to 80 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Adult patients aged 18-80 years and of all genders * Permanent residence \> 2600 m * Diagnosis of pulmonary arterial hypertension PAH (PAHHA-Group) according to guidelines * Patients are stable on therapy * NYHA (new york heart association) functional class I-III * written informed consent to participate in the study Exclusion Criteria: * Age \<18 years or \>80 years * unstable condition * Patients who cannot follow the study investigations * Patient permanently living \< 2600m * Patients who traveled and stayed overnight at altitudes \<2000 m in the past 4 weeks * Patients with moderate to severe concomitant lung disease (FEV1\<70% or forced vital capacity \<70%), severe parenchymal lung disease, severe smokers (\>20 cigarettes/day) * Severely hypoxemic patients at Quito: permanently having persistent SpO2 (oxygen saturation by pulse-oximetry) \<80% on ambient air. * Patient with a non-corrected ventricular septum defect * Relevant concomitant other disease of the heart, kidney, liver, blood (anemia hemoglobin\<11 g/dl)

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

altitude sickness Hypoxia pulmonary arterial hypertension pulmonary artery disease pulmonary hypertension

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

High altitude High altitude effects Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) Pulmonary vascular disease Six-minute walk test

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

The places running it

1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
The official record

ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

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Can a week at sea level ease the strain of High-Altitude heart disease?

What the study statuses mean