Common symptoms of decompression sickness

Ally · 11-17-2007, 11:34 AM

What are the common symptoms of decompression sickness?

Do they appear during ascent, or after you have returned to the surface/got back onto the dive boat?

What are the potential longterm effects of decompression sickness?

How can you avoid being afflicted by it?

Are there any circumstances where the danger of getting decompression sickness outweigh the need to surface quicker than normal?

**dalehall** · 11-20-2007, 12:54 PM

I'm working on this one. Please stand by.

**MgicTwnger** · 11-20-2007, 01:07 PM

Me too. Between us, we should come up with something that makes sense.

Ally · 11-20-2007, 01:28 PM

Cheers lads

I am sure there will be newby divers out there who have heard of decompression sickness but really would not know what to look for, symptom wise or what happens if you happen to become afflicted with it.

**glynneco** · 11-21-2007, 03:44 AM

The exact cause of DCS is not clearly understood. You can dive a safe profile a hundred times with no problem but the 101 you get bent. There are a lot of variables age weight, fitness, stress, medications, smoking, temp above and below the water, air travel, air mix, ascent rate, safety stops, hydration, physical exertion and just plain bad juju are among the top causes. Symtoms range from mild itching and numbness to death. My brother cahd an uncontrolled ascent from 55ft (75ft max depth on the dive) with 46 degree water temp. He developed numbness and tingling in his face several hours later. It took two trips to the deco chamber to eliminate the symptons. On another dive a newly minted c-card holder incorrectly thought she had an equipment failure, paniced and bolted to the surface from 60ft in 46 degrees. I went to the surface eschewing a safety stop because I feared the worst. At the surface the diver apeared upset but normal. When we reached the beach we both did the O2 drill. No DCS sysmtons for either. I made the decision to surface without a safety stop because I feared she might be unconcious face down in the water or otherwise in trouble. I knew there was O2 on the beach. The max depth had been 60ft. Lastly it was my little sister and mom would kill me if anything happened to her. It was a calculated risk that worked out. It might not the next time. I would have reached a different conclusion if it had been a deep dive 100+ ft and or a boat dive.

Avoiding it? slow ascents, safety stops, rested, hydrated, proper temp gear, join DAN and forget the one dollar candle and spring for the five dollar candle on sunday.

This is where I would put in a link to DAN but I herniated a disc again and the hydrocodene is making things difficult....does anyone else hear Greatful dead music? Surgery sometime next week I'm told.

**dalehall** · 11-21-2007, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ally

What are the common symptoms of decompression sickness?

All of these answers are out of the Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving

Common Symptoms of DCS:
Type 1 (non-serious/pain only)
Cutaneous DCS: A red rash in patches, usually on the shoulders and upper chest. Although this type of DCS is not considered serious by itself, it indicates the presence of DCS and the possibility of more serious symptoms.
Joint and Limb Pain DCS: As the name states, this is pain in the joints such as shoulder and elbow.

Type 2 (serious/involving central nervous system)
Neurological DCS: This involves the spinal cord most frequently, commonly causing numbness and paralysis in the lower extremities that creep upward. Also included peripheral tingling and numbness, unconsciousness, respiratory arrest and paralysis.
Pulmonary DCS: This is when gas accumulation overwhelms the pulmonary capillaries to the point where bubbles travel through them and into the arterial side of circulation. The bubbles with will back up blood flow to areas and cause, high heart rate while also having a drop in blood pressure. They can also starve the oxygen/nitrogen exchange and leave the victim feeling air-starved. (Common nickname, “The chokes”) This could also cause the victim to go into a state of shock.
Cerebral DCS: Bubbles in the brain via the carotid artery. Blurred vision, headache, confusion, unconsciousness and death.

Other common symptom can include fatigue and inner ear problems such as hearing loss, dizziness, ear ringing and vertigo. Of course, ear barotraumas can also cause these signs and symptoms, so it can be difficult to diagnose. Often symptoms in the ear are the only DCS indicators the diver may have. Of the above symptoms can happen directly after surfacing or up to hours after the dive.

**dalehall** · 11-21-2007, 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ally

How can you avoid being afflicted by it?

Some Predisposing and Preventative Factors
Body fat: Nitrogen is more soluble in fat than it is in water. Meaning a diver with excessive body fat could absorb more nitrogen than predicted by a decompression model.
Exercise: Exercise has been known to help and hurt in DCS. Hypothesis is, Exercising 12 hours prior to a dive helps with the generation of proteins that protect you from DCS, where as vigorous exercise immediately prior to a dive will raise the number of gas micronuclei on which bubbles form. And immediately after a dive will open up circulation allowing still embedded gas bubbles to move to the arterial side of the circulation process.
Age: Older people may be more susceptible due to changes in circulation and respiratory systems. They also have a larger quantity of body fat in most cases.
Fitness: A physically fit body can tolerate more physical stress than an unfit body.
Dehydration: Dehydration reduces the amount of blood flow available for the gas exchange.
Injury and Illness: Any condition that affects normal circulation can potentially affect inert gas elimination.
Alcohol: Alcohol affects normal circulation, so it can affect inert gas exchange.
Carbon Dioxide: Elevated CO2 from skip-breathing or improper breathing may interfere with gas transport also.
Cold: Cold can affect it by your body altering peripheral circulation to conserve heat.

**dalehall** · 11-21-2007, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ally

Are there any circumstances where the danger of getting decompression sickness outweigh the need to surface quicker than normal?

Wow.. That's a tough one. If you are stuck with the choice of drowning (Out of air situation at depth) or bolting to the surface, most people are going to bolt and take their chances in the chamber. It's a survival instinct. Sometimes it will work out, sometimes it won't.
Take the case of Chris and Chrissy Rouse. Very experienced cave divers. They were helping with the identification process of U-869 (U-Who) off the coast of New Jersey. They had a pretty major SNAFU at 230 FSW. They lost track of their spare tanks and ran out of air. Both bolted to the surface. Chris Rouse died on the deck of the boat. Chrissy survived the trip to the chamber but died 4 hours later in the chamber. You can read the story of the Rouses in Bernie Chowdhury's novel "The Last Dive"
Of course there have been others to bolt and have no problems and others, that have learned to walk all over again, but have survived the ordeal. I don't know the actual details of Kimber's bout with DCS, but she is one of the survivors of a major DCS hit.
I guess all this means: It's your choice. I hope no one here ever has to make the choice, but most of use would probably make the same one if we had to make it.

**dalehall** · 11-21-2007, 04:13 PM

Divers Alert Network

**MgicTwnger** · 11-21-2007, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dalehall

You can read the story of the Rouses in Bernie Chowdhury's novel "The Last Dive".

That book is one of the classics of scuba literature. It gives a unique look into the world of technical diving.
The Rouses became very advanced in a short time, had a devil-may-care attitude, and paid the ultimate price. IMHO, they were immature jerks. That was an accident that should never have happened.