Mayo Clinic research team returns from Everest

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Mayo Clinic research team is back in Minnesota after conducting research at Mount Everest.

The Rochester Post-Bulletin reports (http://bit.ly/JpmVwE ) the team members returned Saturday.

They left in mid-April and stayed at a base camp until a week ago, then began a 50-mile trip with plans to do 10 days of research. But they returned a couple days early for reasons related to athletes they were studying.

Because Everest is the highest mountain in the world, Mayo officials say it's a natural lab for studying heart disease and other problems. The extreme altitude puts climbers under the same conditions experienced by patients suffering from heart disease.

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Information from: Post-Bulletin, http://www.postbulletin.com

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.

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