Inhaled Budesonide for Altitude Illness Prevention

A randomized, double-blinded study will be conducted to validate the results of previous literature on the use of budesonide in the prevention of altitude sickness. It will be conducted using healthy participants overseen by experienced wilderness medicine and altitude researchers from the Altitude Research Center at University of Colorado Denver. Participants will be recruited from the Denver community and prescreened for eligibility via phone. 100 participants, after consenting, will have baseline data and blood collected and will begin budesonide therapy 72 hours prior to being taken from Denver to Pikes Peak, where they will be observed at altitude for 18 hours. Patients will have the opportunity to withdraw consent at any time and will be monitored continuously by physician-researchers. Data collection and blood draws will be performed at specific time points and analyzed for efficacy of budesonide vs. placebo in the incidence of altitude sickness.