This special four part series explores the fascinating story of Xtreme Everest – the ground-breaking, research programme that has pursued a novel approach to scientific exploration. Over the last decade, this innovative team has performed large scale studies at high altitude to mimic some of the effects of critical illness. The objective is for their findings to be brought “from the mountainside to the bedside” so that the care for our sickest patients may be improved.

In this podcast, Denny Levett explains the complex and unpredictable nature of hypoxia, its prevalence in critical care and why there was the scientific demand to head to the world’s highest mountain in search of answers to this clinical challenge.

Presented by Joff Lacey with his guest Denny Levett, a consultant in perioperative medicine and critical care at Southampton University Hospital and deputy research leader for the Xtreme Everest expedition in 2007.