High altitude tourism is becoming increasingly popular among non-athletic population but its potential impact on health is often neglected. This study investigated the changes in male sex hormones after the trek in altitudes between 1400m- and 6476m. 17 recreational lowland men (age 48±11) participated in 26 day Himalaya trek, with the highest point reached being Mera Peak. The initial measurements were performed 10 days before departure and included blood work (total testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH)) and ergometry on treadmill. The final measurements were done 24h after return to 122m (4 days after altitude of 4300m, and 8 days after altitude of 6476m). During the tour SpO2 and heart rate were measured 21 times. An increase in SHBG (42.6±10.6 to 50.7±12.0 nmol·L-1; P=0.011), and subsequent decrease in calculated free testosterone (1.8±0.3 to 1.6±0.3%; P=0.003) were observed. There was a significant correlation between the relative testosterone decrease and SHBG with mean SpO2 (Spearman R=-0.64 and 0.41 respectively). LH and FSH increased significantly (FSH Median;IQR before= 3.9;0.42 and after 4.6;4.0-7.1 IU·L-1; P=0.001 and LH Median/IQR before= 4.8/3.1-5.2 and after 5.9/4.9-9.3 IU·L-1; P=0.008). The changes in LH and FSH did not correlate with SpO2 whereas physical fitness (expressed in MET) did. In conclusion, the pituitary-adrenal-gonadal axis was affected by altitude trek (involving physical exertion and hypoxia in combination) but the origin, duration and the impact of changes on various aspects of men’s health should be further investigated. Key words: altitude, gonadotropins, testosterone, hypoxia

中文翻译：

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喜马拉雅山跋涉一个月后，男性性激素与血红蛋白氧饱和度的反应

高海拔旅游在非运动人群中正变得越来越流行，但其对健康的潜在影响通常被忽略。这项研究调查了1400m至6476m之间海拔高度跋涉后男性性激素的变化。17天（48±11岁）的休闲低地男子参加了为期26天的喜马拉雅山跋涉，最高点是梅拉峰。初始测量在出发前10天进行，包括血液检查（总睾丸激素，性激素结合球蛋白（SHBG），硫酸脱氢表雄甾酮（DHEA-S），促卵泡激素（FSH）和黄体生成激素（LH））和跑步机。最终测量在返回122m后的24小时（海拔4300m后4天，海拔6476m后8天）进行。在旅行中，SpO2和心率被测量了21次。观察到SHBG升高（42.6±10.6至50.7±12.0nmol·L-1； P = 0.011），随后游离睾丸激素的计算减少（1.8±0.3至1.6±0.3％； P = 0.003）。相对睾丸激素减少和SHBG与平均SpO2之间存在显着相关性（Spearman R分别为-0.64和0.41）。LH和FSH显着增加（FSH中位数; IQR之前= 3.9; 0.42和之后4.6; 4.0-7.1 IU·L-1; P = 0.001，LH中位数/ IQR在4.8 / 3.1-5.2之前和5.9 / 4.9-9.3之后IU·L-1； P ＝ 0.008）。LH和FSH的变化与SpO2不相关，而身体健康（以MET表示）却与此相关。总之，垂体-肾上腺-性腺轴受高原跋涉（涉及体力消耗和缺氧的影响）的影响，但应进一步研究其起源，持续时间以及变化对男性健康各个方面的影响。