Am i bent?

[chrisjns20]

Im not sure how this forum thing works. Im a relatively new diver. The deepest dive ive ever done was the certification deep dive 60ft, and planned to get into diving to do shallow dives(like max 20ft). Im currently working on becoming a pilot and the local quarry put a plane at 65ft. I and my dad went and bought a tank of air each planning to dive to it. So on our first dive we went to about 45ft and decided it was not worth the cold and went up. I noted the new dive computer beeping and looked on the way up to notice it saying we were ascending too fast. I found that odd because i was going slower than usual because i was having trouble clearing my ears. the 40ft dive was less than 30 mins. To kill the rest of that tank of air we messed around at the shallower depths. I noted the dive computer counted it all as one dive(the 40ft and shallow dive (the SIT was less than 5 mins))and gave me an average depth of 18ft. So with one tank of air and a total dive time of over an hour and an average depth of 18 ft. DCs was the last thing on my mind. This was 5 days ago. the next 3 days i had a prety bad headache on and off and felt really tired. yesterday i cut 15 acres of grass.the headache still sorta lingering but not as bad. Complaining about the headache my dad said "ha ha your probably bent".thinking back i remembered feeling a little sore after the dive and attributing that to being out of shape. Now im just figuring that it is aches and pains from running a weed-eater and push lawnmower all day. Also since i have asthma it is not so uncommon to feel ache and short of breath for up to a week after grass day. So i guess my question is could it really be the bends? i mean a headache that started after diving. i attributed to the difficulty i was having clearing my ears. and now as it subsides aching i attribute to grass cutting. Probably just me being paranoid, but because i cant remember the lectures from dive class i would appreciate some insight. Anyway in the event that it is what would be my course of action almost a week after the fact. would it have dissolved out by now. Does it dissolve out over time? I appreciate your time.

 

[tc]

Impossible to say over the internet.

Safest bet would be to consult your physician, make sure to bring up your asthma and see if he thinks tat could be an issue for you.

You can call DAN but their advice will likely also be to consult your physician since you seem to have some lingering symptoms.

Bubbles will resolve themselves over time but there can be tissue damage remaining even after the bubble is gone.

 

[aquaregia]

Welcome to the forum. Too bad it's not under happier circumstances.

I'll leave the medical speculation to others more qualified than myself, however I just wanted to point out that there's no reason not to call DAN. It's a free call and they're friendly dudes. Even if all they say is "consult a physician" or similar, you're certainly no worse. 1-800-446-2671.

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

First off this is not the sort of thing that will get sorted out in a chat room. DAN has staff trained in dive medicine and will discuss this with you, and can provide a referral to a physician trained in dive medicine in your area if that is necessary. They can be reached at 800-446-2671 8:30-5 ET.

It could be you have a barotrauma of your sinuses (an overexpansion injury) due to the rapid ascent and difficultly in clearing. Reverse blocks are fairly uncommon but asthma and allergies can make them more likely. Given the relatively shallow dive it seems unlikely that you are bent in the usual sense of having nitrogen bubbles in your system. Was there pain during the rapid ascent?

 

[Dr Deco]

Hi Chrisjns20:

It is unlikely at this duration post dive that it is DCS. The headache is generally - and more likely - from carbon dioxide accumulation. The aches are probably from the physical activity following the dive.

It costs nothing to call DAN as the others have suggested.:cool2:

 

[DocVikingo]

First off this is not the sort of thing that will get sorted out in a chat room. DAN has staff trained in dive medicine and will discuss this with you, and can provide a referral to a physician trained in dive medicine in your area if that is necessary....

RE "The call DAN reflex"

On this and other diving medicine forums I frequently see responders, who appear to be genuine in their desire to be helpful, stating or implying that DAN is the only one qualified to answer the question and should always be contacted.

Of course emergency diving medicine inquires should be brought to their immediate attention. And, while it often is a wise idea to inquire of DAN about non-urgent situations, one needs to appreciate the likely limitations of doing so.

For example, when one contacts DAN they first, and often only, speak with a paraprofessional (e.g., registered nurse, diving EMT). These folks often simply thumb to DAN's medical FAQs (http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/me...q/Default.aspx) and read or email a paraphrasing to the individual. They frequently are quite busy and give the briefest possible reply. For understandable reasons, DAN provides very limited direct physician access. As such, the answers received from the experts on a diving medicine forum are likely to be longer and more informative than the responses from DAN, even when both are in essence correct. A stroll around this forum will demonstrate that indeed inquires such as the above do in fact "get sorted out in a chat room."

Also, diving medicine forums typically afford greater opportunity for more rapid give and take between participants than is the case with DAN. Finally, links to previous board threads on the topic, professional magazine and journal articles on the subject, and other reference sources are often given on these forums, another nicety not usually provided in a DAN reply.

And, DAN does occasionally give a rather shaky response. I can cite a number of these, several from this very forum (e.g., see posts #28, #29 and #31 from this thread -> http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/as...-visual-disturbances-after-much-diving-3.html) DAN is a very worthy and valuable organization, and I have written a number of articles for their Alert Diver magazine, but it is not the be all and end all of diving medicine fact and opinion.

It would seem wisest to inquire from a range of sources and see how the opinions rank based on the factual and theoretical support given an opinion, the thoroughness and clarity of the response, and similar factors.

In summary, in non-emergency cases (such as this one) I can see no compelling reason not to seek advice from recognized diving medicine forums and other reputable sources that have knowledgeable physician participation and turning to DAN only if that fails. Some diving medicine inquiries are rather easy to answer and do not require DAN's valuable, but limited, medical resources.

I would also mention that DAN's expert referral list gets a bit thin outside of major metropolitan areas, especially in the less populated states, and a convenient appropriate referral isn't always a sure thing.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

Typical responses in these forms is to have multiple and often contradictory opinions offered. DAN while imperfect does provide a readily accessible and relatively reliable source of information which is worth of taking advantage of. The original poster likely will read through all the posts and glean what advise he can as he should. Asking him to sort through unclear posts while offering no pertinent advice is not helpful however.

 

[DocVikingo]

Typical responses in these forms is to have multiple and often contradictory opinions offered. DAN while imperfect does provide a readily accessible and relatively reliable source of information which is worth of taking advantage of. The original poster likely will read through all the posts and glean what advise (sp?) he can as he should. Asking him to sort through unclear posts while offering no pertinent advice is not helpful however (sic).

But this is not what I advised, Mr Carcharodon. What I advised was, "It would seem wisest to inquire from a range of sources and see how the opinions rank based on the factual and theoretical support given an opinion, the thoroughness and clarity of the response, and similar factors."

As for "pertinent advice," I'd suggest he attend to DrDeco's post above, with which I concur except for the "It costs nothing to call DAN as the others have suggested" part. While it may not cost the caller anything, it does cost DAN to respond. So, if a diver isn't yet a dues paying DAN member, s/he should consider joining.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

Regarding Micheal's comment is it likely that a CO2 induced headache is going to persist eight days after a dive?

 

[idocsteve]

Im currently working on becoming a pilot and the local quarry put a plane at 65ft. I and my dad went and bought a tank of air each planning to dive to it.

You're planning to be a pilot...so you dived a sunken plane in a quarry?

I'm really trying to follow the logic on that one but I'm admittedly falling short.

So on our first dive we went to about 45ft and decided it was not worth the cold and went up. I noted the new dive computer beeping and looked on the way up to notice it saying we were ascending too fast. I found that odd because i was going slower than usual because i was having trouble clearing my ears.

Even if you ascend rapidly for only a few feet, a dive computer may signal a rapid ascent. That can happen quite easily especially in poor vis (or in completely clear water) when doing a free ascent.