What is HAPE?
HAPE stands for high altitude pulmonary edema. Lungs fill up with fluid due to poor acclimatization, and without immediate descent it can be fatal. The symptoms of HAPE include a dry cough that turns into a gurgling cough followed by pink foam in the mouth. Another form of Edema is Cerebral Edema that is also fatal and harder to diagnose. More common is Acute Altitude Sickness which can be mild such as shortness of breath, headaches and nausea or in severe cases it can also be fatal. Talk to your doctor before planning a trip to the Himalaya.
