By Dr Rafia Akhter
A few days ago, I took some time off from work to visit Cairns, a city in tropical ‘Far North Queensland’ and considered to be the gateway to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. I went there for a holiday trip with my extended family (group of 10 people!) for a week. I was so amazed by the natural beauty there that I will remember this trip for the rest of my life.
Read More »Dr Chris Davenport , TMA Boronia
It’s Monday morning, another busy day in General Practice filled with the usual interesting patients – for blood pressure reviews, medication repeats, women’s health discussions and children with the latest coughs and colds.
Read More »Ayubowan Readers! “Ayubowan” is the word used in Sri Lanka to greet someone
Sri Lanka is a small Island off the south east tip of the Indian subcontinent. Measuring a total area of 65 610km, it is home to 20.5 million people (2013). Until 1972 the island was known as Ceylon, however still goes by many other names such as “The pearl of the Indian Ocean” and “The teardrop of India”. Colombo is the nation’s commercial and capital city.
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Prepared by TMA Member Boronia
Decompression Sickness (DCS) is also known as Acute Decompression Illness (ADI) or, more colloquially, as the ‘bends’ (because the pain involved can bend a person).
DCS in the setting of scuba diving or deep-sea diving, refers to an illness caused by an overly rapid ascent to the water’s surface.
During a scuba dive, the diver absorbs additional quantities of oxygen and nitrogen into the blood and tissues. The nitrogen is dissolved into the bloodstream, where it remains during the dive. Once a diver begins their ascent, the surrounding water pressure decreases. If this transition occurs too quickly, the nitrogen does not have sufficient time to leave the bloodstream and be exhaled via the lungs. Instead, nitrogen bubbles form in the bloodstream which can enter tissues throughout the body.
Factors increasing risk of DCS
Symptoms of DCS
Approximately fifty percent of divers with DCS develop symptoms within 1 hour after surfacing, 90 % within 6 hours and 98 per cent within the first 24 hours.
Generally, the sooner the symptoms develop, the more serious the DCS is likely to be.
DCS symptoms vary significantly because nitrogen bubbles can lodge in different parts of the body. The symptoms experienced are largely determined by the where the bubbles ultimately lodge. eg. bubbles that lodge in the joints will cause joint pain; bubbles under the skin can cause a blotchy rash/itching; bubble formation in the spine may lead to limb weakness/ paralysis, etc.
Early Management of DCS
Seek medical treatment as soon as any symptom of DCS is noticed. If available, apply 100% oxygen by mask ASAP to help relieve some symptoms and reduce oxygen-deprived tissue injury. Treat dehydration, maintain blood pressure and prevent shock.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy in a high pressure chamber reverses the pressure changes that cause the nitrogen bubbles to form. The bubbles redissolve and can then be exhaled by the lungs.
Prevention of Decompression sickness
Avoid flying within 24 hours after diving (increasing altitude during a flight will further decrease pressure in the bloodstream, hence potentially increasing bubble formation and exacerbating injuries).
Divers’ Emergency Service (DES)
This is a free phone consultation service for diving-related medical emergencies. They can also provide the location of the nearest hyperbaric chamber.
24 Hour Hotline:
ph: 1800 088 200 (toll free from within Australia)
618 8212 9242 (if calling from outside Australia
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Travel Health Information
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