Almost all serious neurological disorders, such as craniocerebral trauma and cerebrovascular accidents, can induce neurogenic pulmonary oedema; the main mechanism of pathogenesis is that the oedema centre in the lower thalamus, which has been damaged by trauma, is disinhibited and pulmonary oedema develops.
Typical plateau pulmonary oedema often occurs in young people who ascend rapidly to plateaus above 2500 m and can be induced by more strenuous exercise before acclimatization to the low oxygen and low pressure environment of the plateau.