I am going on a walking holiday to Austrian Alps & remember seeing something about impact of altitude - assume makes heart work harder. Not likely to get higher than 1700 m at most ( on cable car!). Any info/advice? .
(For info, had HA & 2 stents earlier this year . Currently well & all results within normal limits).
Obviously run it past your GP/cardiologist first. There was some published research that suggested a maximum altitude of 2,500m for heart patients. This equates to Manchu Pinchu where occasionally people do get into trouble. So it looks as if you should be fine. Listen to your body, avoid the heat of the day and keep well hydrated. Enjoy your holidays but not to many of their delicious cakes!
Thank you everyone for your replies . I have found a link with some info: reuters.com/article/us-hear...
You can rest assured that I will be walking not only at altitude but also with attitude!
Hi I researched this a while back and understood 3000' plus to be the point of likely discomfort. I would be surprised if you had issues at 1700' in cable car. Probably someone else on this forum can help further 😊
I don't have an answer to your question, but I take my hat off to anyone who refuses to let their heart problems dictate how they'll live their life.
Enjoy your holiday, I hope the sun shines every day!
We are doing the same. Think we may need to curtail some of the walks. We are going to St Anton (which is high to start with). We will go up in cable cars and walk down. Only thing heart rehab said was get used to walking with rucksack before we go. Peter had ha and two stents in each of two arteries and balloon in circumflex. Where are you going and when.
Going to Saalbach in September. Have been to Austria a couple of times before & am used to carrying a rucksack. Noticed before HA that some of the heights can affect breathing for my partner too who does not have heart probs - generally slows you down a little but has to be quite high- St Anton area should be OK . Walking down can be strenuous especially for the knees - might be better to walk on level paths at the top & get cable car back down.
Hi, I had a stent fitted to LAD in March 2011. I live part of Year in French Alps, skiing for a lot of winter season and walking to a lesser extent in the summer. Highest ski lift is 3400 metres. Any walking uphill at that height and you will definitely notice shortness of breath. The house is located at 1500 metres and during any steep uphill walking even at that elevation I also notice more breathlessness compared with sea level. Gets easier after first few days. Not any heart trouble or chest pain though. The locals are like mountain goats even those in their eighties!
Enjoy your holiday.
Henry
Thank you , Henry, for your information and encouragement!
I have a pacemaker and I ski twice a year at altitude and yes you can feel it at height but I find that I acclimatise relatively quickly. You just need to go at your own pace.
Since I had my valves fixed in 2014 I have been walking every summer in Austria - Mayerhofen, lech, Seefeld, Alpbach and I will shortly be going to Kitzbuhel. Most Insurance companies will cover you up to 2,000 metres without any problems, and a bit higher if you pay a bit extra.
I am also a member of the Austrian Alpine club, who offer a helicopter rescue insurance cove for a reasonable fee.
If you fly the cabin altitude is set to about 8.000 feet and my doctor said as long as you can walk up a couple of flights of stairs you should be OK. I try and plan my walks so that we zoom up on a lift, walk along a ridge, or a slowly descending path to another lift and sit down, admire the views, drink a radler (shandy) along the way, have lunch and either wander down or zoom back down.
I always take 2 poles so I can lean on them and take a blow without falling down and try a bit of Nordic walking along the way. Got to watch the bag though - it tends to turn into the garden shed - everything goes in it.
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