Aeromedical Factors

E01
 Standard
Area I, Task D
• Symptoms, causes, effects, and corrective action of at least three
(3) of the following—
– hypoxia.
– hyperventilation.
– middle ear and sinus problems.
– Spatial disorientation.
– Motion sickness.
– Carbon monoxide poisoning (self-launch).
– Stress and fatigue.
– Dehydration and heatstroke.
• Effects of alcohol and drugs, including over-the-counterdrugs.
• Effects of evolved gas from scuba diving on a pilot during flight
 Index
• Stress and Fatigue
• Dehydration/Heat
• Cold
• Hypoxia
• Hyperventilation
• Carbon Monoxide
• Inner Ear Effects
• Aerobatic Flight
• SCUBA
 Fatigue and Stress
• Solution
• Causes
• Effects
 Fatigue
• Solution: Rest and Stress Management
• Causes of Fatigue:
– Inadequate sleep
– Poor nutrition or hydration, poor health
– Prolonged stress
• Mental or physical
• Causes of Stress: Physical and Mental
• Tiredness may not reflect Fatigue
– Can feel wide awake while suffering from fatigue
 Effects of Fatigue
• Easily distracted • Reduction/Impairment of:
• Fixated – Cognitive functions
• Mood swings – Decision making
– Reaction time
• Poor judgment
– Coordination
• Indecisiveness
– Speed
– Balance Focus
– Attention
 Dehydration/Heat Stroke
• Causes
• Symptoms
• Prevention
 Dehydration/Heat Stroke Causes
• Flying increases heat and water loss
– Hot cockpit
– Direct exposure to sun
– Dry air at altitude dehydrates body
• 150 lb person: 1% of body’s water = ~16 oz
• Dehydration: Loss of water. Loss of:
– 2% impacts body’s ability to regulate heat.
– 3% decreases muscle cell contraction times.
– 4% results in a 5 to 10 percent drop in overall
performance, which can last up to four hours.
 Symptoms
• Heat stress (99.5° to 100° F body temp) reduces:
– Performance, dexterity and coordination
– Ability to make quick decisions Earliest effects include
poor judgment critical
– Alertness to
– Visual capabilities flight safety
– Caution and caring
• 2. Heat exhaustion (101° to 105° F ):
– Fatigue , Nausea/vomiting, Giddiness, Cramps, Rapid
breathing, Fainting
• 3. Heat stroke (above-105° F body temperature)
symptoms: Mental confusion, Disorientation, Bizarre
behavior, Coma
 Preventing Dehydration
• Pre-hydrate
– Urine should be of light color
• Avoid caffeinated/carbonated beverages
– reduce thirst and fluid intakes
• Always carry water
– Thirst sensation not a reliable indicator
– Drink before you feel thirsty
• Use vents, hats, and light colored clothing.
 Cold
• Field temps ≠ Temps @Altitude
• Special concern for wave flying
• Plan accordingly
– Layered clothing
– Body parts in sun may be warm while shaded
parts (like feet) become very cold

Frostbite Is Possible!
 Hypoxia
• Cause: Altitude
– Percent of O2 constant, but pressure drops
• Effects of hypoxia increased by:
– Medical conditions
– Drugs
– Smoking
– General fitness
• Vision effects (especially night vision) as low as
5000 feet MSL
• >10,000 O2 recommended
 Hypoxia Effects
12-15,000 feet MSL >12,500-14,000 feet MSL
• Euphoria • >12,500-14,000 Crew
• Judgment members after 30 minutes
• Memory • >14,000 Crew members
• Alertness • >15,000 Everyone
• Coordination
• Ability to perform calculations >16,000 feet MSL
• Drowsiness • Gray-out
• Dizziness • Tunnel vision
• Belligerence • Blue fingers/lips
• Headache • Unconsciousness
 Hypoxia
• Symptoms are individual specific:
– Chamber training recommended
• Supplemental O2 Required by 91.211
– >12,500-14,000 Crew members after 30 minutes
– >14,000 Crew members
– >15,000 Everyone
 Hyperventilation
• Rapid breathing  low levels of CO2
– Low CO2 tricks body into believing it is not getting
enough air Faster breathing
• Caused by:
– Feeling very anxious or having a panic attack
– Severe pain
– Stress
– High altitude, knowing the O2 pressure is low,
pilots may have a tendency to breath rapidly
 Hyperventilation
• Symptoms: (1) Rapid Breathing
– Chest pain
– Confusion
– Dizziness
– Dry mouth
– Light-headedness
– Muscle spasms in the hands and feet
– Numbness and tingling in the arms or around the mouth
– Palpitations
– Shortness of breath
– Weakness
 Hyperventilation
• Slow breathing:
– Breathe through pursed lips (as if you are blowing
out a candle)
– Cover your mouth and one nostril, and breathe
through the other nostril.
– Speak or sing to slow breathing
 Carbon Monoxide
• CO is colorless, odorless and tasteless
– But the only source is exhaust gases
• Interferes with blood carrying O2
• Symptoms:
– Initial :
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Nausea
– Eventually:
• Confusion and drowsiness.
• Fast breathing, fast heartbeat, or chest pain.
• Vision problems
• Muscle twitch
• Unconsciousness and eventually death
 Carbon Monoxide
• Prevention:
– Maintenance of a/c exhaust system
– CO detectors
• Solution:
– Stop exposure
• Turn off heater
– Fresh air
– O2
 Inner Ear Effects
• Pressure Effects
• Middle ear is a
closed chamber
• Normally simple
jaw movements
open inner ear
• Effect of Congestion
• Valhalla maneuver
• Avoid drugs
 Inner Ear Detecting Motion

• Detects change in motion

• After ~20 sec , sensation of
motion fades
• Stopping feels like acceleration
in the opposite direction
 Spatial Disorientation
• Usually occurs with loss of external references,
especially horizon
• Literally cannot tell where up or down is
• Inner ear gives false impressions
• Likely scenarios:
– Scud running resulting in VFR into IMC
– Inattentive wave pilot getting caught on top of a
solid cloud layer
Classic Graveyard Spiral
 Motion Sickness
• >25% of airline pilots have experienced
motion sickness
• Affected students often, after a few lessons,
become accustomed to the sensations
• Minimizing:
– Eat smart before flight
– Keep the vents open
– Avoid sudden head movements
– Focus outside aircraft
 Aerobatic Flight
• Push-over Maneuvers
– Headache
– “Red-Out”
– Unconsciousness
• High G Maneuvers
– Tunnel vision
– “Gray Outs”
– Unconsciousness
 SCUBA Diving and Flying
• Up to 8,000 MSL:
– No decompression: Wait 12 hours before flying
– Decompression stops: 24 hours before flying
• >8,000 feet MSL: Wait 24 hours (best rule)
 Alcohol and Drugs
• Alcohol is a depressant which causes impaired
judgment
– Legal limit: 0.04 % + 8 hours bottle to throttle
• OTC drugs like antihistamine cause drowsiness
and impaired judgment
 CFI Standard
• Area II Task A AEROMEDICAL FACTORS
• Objective. To determine that the applicant exhibits instructional
knowledge of the elements related to aeromedical factors by describing:
– Hypoxia ,its symptoms, effects, and corrective action.
– Hyper ventilation, its symptoms, effects, and corrective action.
– Middle ear and sinus problems, their causes, effects, and corrective action.
– Spatial disorientation, its causes, effects, and corrective action.
– Motion sickness, its causes, effects, and corrective action.
– Effects of alcohol and drugs, and their relationship to safety.
– Effects of dehydration and their relationship to flight safety.
– Carbon monoxide poisoning, its symptoms, effects and corrective action (self-
launch).
– How evolved gas from scuba diving can effect a pilot during flight.
– Fatigue, its effects and corrective action.