Good rule-following citizens that we are, we started taking the acetazolamide pills (250 mg x 4 daily) the day before we were to land in Quito, Ecuador to minimize altitude sickness. How does it work, you might ask? Basically, when we are not acclimated to the altitude, we compensate by hyperventilating, which causes respiratory alkalosis, which unfortunately tells our brain to slow down our respiratory rate when we actually need to be breathing at a faster rate. In a few days, the kidneys usually do the compensating for the respiratory alkalosis by getting rid of bicarbonate. With acetazolamide, this compensation process can be induced early.
We were suppose to continue with the regimen for 2 days after arriving in Quito. We have no idea if the pills worked or not because we stopped taking the pills after about 7 doses due to the annoying side effects. We still experienced some of the common symptoms of altitude sickness such as fatigue, lack of appetite, and general malaise; but no headaches, nausea, or vomiting - so maybe the drugs had some effect.
We had most of the classic side effects as stated in the literature, "numbness and tingling in the fingers and toes, and taste alterations (parageusia), especially for carbonated drinks. Also possible gastrointestinal disturbances such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea; polyuria, and occasional instances of drowsiness and confusion. Some may also experience blurred vision but this usually disappears shortly after stopping the medication." Akiko got a bonus issue - she broke out in a rash after taking the meds. Not exactly life-threatening but very uncomfortable in a foreign country without knowing how to access the needed remedies.
The taste alteration was weird because Akiko kept complaining that she didn't like the beer in Ecuador because it tasted bad. That alone should've stopped us from taking acetazolamide any further! Mike kept complaining that he couldn't see very well. All this was very disorienting in a place where we needed our wits about us, so we quit taking the meds and we've been fine.
