2 DCS hits and a PFO closure
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archer1960
Contributor
What is ASD? I just did a Bubble (PFO) challenge last WED. It was pretty cool to watch. I think you are correct that any habitual Undeserved hits get a PFO challenge done. The success rate of repair is quite high. 6mos is a long time BUT better safe than sorry. 9 hrs in the can and possible perminant injury is not worth the rush. The Ocean will be there laong after we are gone LOL.
OP
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ASD is an atrial septal defect, a congenital defect in the wall between the right and left atria that arises when the heart is forming in utero. PFO is a condition that is normal in a fully developed fetus in utero but not after birth. ASD is considered by most authorities to be an absolute contraindication for diving because their morphology increases the probability of venous bubbles crossing over to the arterial circulation.
Best regards,
DDM
Thats what I thought Just was not sure it was what he was saying. Admittedly too lazy to read the whole thread LOL. We've had several PFO related hits since 2010. at least 3 TT6's max ext. Also We talked about it (ASD) a bit during the NOAA/UMHS course last year. Thanks
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As your heart is forming in utero, the wall between the two top chambers (atria) is formed by one wall growing up from the bottom and one growing down from the top. These don't meet but actually overlap causing a "flap" of sorts. This design allows oxygenated blood from the placenta to cross over from the right atrium to the left atrium, bypassing the lungs which are collapsed and full of fluid at the time. At birth, the lungs open up and pressure causes the flap to "slam shut". In about 75% of people the flap completely seals but in about 25% it doesn't completely seal which leaves a PFO (patent foramen ovale). Therefore, PFO is not a DISEASE. It is a "normal variant" -- like having blue eyes or being left handed, both of which occur less frequently than PFO. As a blue-eyed left handed person myself, I'd like to think I am a "normal variant" and don't have a "disease".
With an atrial septal defect, as the wall grows up from the bottom and down from the top, the growth stops prematurely and the two walls never meet and result in a true hole in the wall between the two atrium, the atrial septum. Hence the term atrial septal defect (ASD).
ASDs are usually closed for reasons unrelated to diving, but as brought up above, an uncorrected ASD is a contraindication to diving due to the free passage of blood, and bubbles, from the right to left side of the heart.
With an atrial septal defect, as the wall grows up from the bottom and down from the top, the growth stops prematurely and the two walls never meet and result in a true hole in the wall between the two atrium, the atrial septum. Hence the term atrial septal defect (ASD).
ASDs are usually closed for reasons unrelated to diving, but as brought up above, an uncorrected ASD is a contraindication to diving due to the free passage of blood, and bubbles, from the right to left side of the heart.
Great post, and important.
If anyone is interested in knowing more about PFOs, here is a piece I wrote about them a couple of years ago for the Wilderness Medicine Newsletter.
Jeff Toorish Photography
If anyone is interested in knowing more about PFOs, here is a piece I wrote about them a couple of years ago for the Wilderness Medicine Newsletter.
Jeff Toorish Photography
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