The common geographical classification of high altitude is over 2500 meters (8202 feet) above sea level and people living in mountain villages experience following health-related problems. Though, adults and old children are capable of adjusting to situation where oxygen concentrations are small in these regions; the new born baby is especially sensitive due to physiologic development. The decrease in oxygen supply, dubbed as hypoxia, at high altitude can affect the newborn both in the short-term and with pervasive long-term impacts on the child’s physical health and brain functioning.

Oxygen Deprivation and Respiratory Issues

Another generic implication of high altitude on neonates is the absence of oxygen. When it is located in different altitudes, it means that there is low concentration of oxygen, especially for the new borns. Newborns whose respiratory systems are still immature are greatly affected by this decrease in oxygen supply. Sometimes, newborns may also have hypoxemia – low oxygen levels in the blood, which is not very good as well. Due to the lower oxygen supply, hypoxemia may alter the workings of organs and especially the heart and lungs as the body struggles to deliver oxygen to the most important body tissues.

Respiratory distress syndrome is evident in most newborns born at high altitudes because the lungs are unable to fully expand and supply the body with enough oxygen. In some instances, they may refer to the emergency services for supplemental oxygen or respiratory assistance. There is no neonatal care in remote mountain villages which increases the risk as hospitals with neonatal care are distant from such areas. This puts newborns at a higher risk of developing long term respiratory complications if they do not access sufficient intervention.

Heart and Circulatory System Adaptations

Newborns living in the mountain villages are also at a disadvantage as concerns the cardiovascular system in the following way. In response to low oxygen levels, innovative vital process of erythropoiesis is set in action to enhance on delivery of oxygen in the body. Though this adaptation assists in increasing the levels of oxygen carrying capacity of blood, it increases the viscosity of blood also increases the load of heart for any newborn. Eventually this results in high pulmonary artery pressure and potential for developing pulmonary hypertension as time goes by.

Pulmonary hypertension is a medical condition where the pressure of the blood that flows in thee arteries of the lungs is raised to hazardous levels making it challenging for the heart to pump blood to the lungs. In newborns, this can affect the functioning of blood vessels in controlling oxygen delivery and may lead to severe health issues later in life. Though a lot of adults and older children can cope with these cardiovascular changes they are most deleterious in newborns due to hypoplastic cardiovascular systems. Those cases of persistent pulmonary hypertension that occur in newborns have the potential of causing chronic heart diseases, developmental disabilities as well as death.

Cognitive and Developmental Impacts

It is also important to note that in newborns, the impact of high altitude is not only expressed in cardiopulmonary systems only. Deficiency of oxygen at certain developmental periods can also lead to life-altering effects on cognitive ability and on the growth of the brain. Research has also revealed that children who are born in regions of high altitude have a higher possibility of developing delays in their development especially in such areas as language, physical abilities and even memory.

Prolonged hypoxia, or long term use of oxygen, during infancy have consequences in relation to growth of brain cells and thus causing structural abnormalities. Low oxygen levels are another cause of strokes especially in areas of the brain which are more vulnerable; hippocampus – responsible for learning and memory. Therefore, children born in high altitude are likely to have learning and cognitive problems as they develop into adulthood. This results in worst academic performance, poor attention and other developmental problems associated with learning.

In addition, such effects are deteriorated by the reality that most of the remote mountain villages’ populations have inadequate health services and limited education. Infants diagnosed with early developmental disorders may never get the assistance required to prevent such ails thus predisposing them to future learning disabilities.

Growth and Physical Development

For the same reason, newborns in high altitude are also at risk of physical growth delay. Hypoxia can have pathophysiology effects on other metabolic functions of the body thus causing a condition called altitude related growth restriction. They also comprise restricted growth, poor rate of development which includes walking and talking ability as well as low birth weight.

Also, growth can be undermined by a decrease of the nutrient absorption and utilization by the body due to hypoxia. For instance, iron deficiency, which is more frequent in regions with high altitude leads to oxygen impoverishment intensification, as it hampers the body’s capability to produce hemoglobin – an oxygen-carrying protein. When levels of Iron are not sufficient, the neonates may experience difficult in adapting in low-oxygen environment and will compound their problems besides slowing down their growth and development.

Newborns born at high altitude also may experience growth ‘catch-up. ’ Whenever children initially have poor growth rates, they may begin to grow much faster when they go to a lower altitude or are given supplemental oxygen. However it can be to varying degrees, and not all infants in particular newborns are able to reach the level of catch up growth at all, leave alone reaching growth restriction that is faced in the initial days of life

Conclusion

High altitude impacts the health of the newborns in mountain villages in many ways with both short and delayed effects. With these regions having low oxygen levels in the atmosphere, newborns are at high risk of developing respiratory problems, delayed development and many others. While some newborns are able to grow into the high altitude environment some may have long term effects on their physical development, their brain development and the cardiovascular circulation of their whole body. These areas pose numerous challenges that can be solved by; providing better access to health services, ante-natal care services, and better nutrition to reduce the effects of elevated altitude on these infants and other vulnerable people.