Bent!

[lowviz]

...//...As with most accidents the real answer is likely a combination of things, and dialing back all those I can identify will help tilt the odds back in my favor. ...//...

Now there is something worth repeating, agree completely.

Thanks, and best wishes for a full recovery.

 

[freewillie]

Tobin, thank you for sharing. Glad to hear you had a great outcome and God speed for a full recovery.

While we diver's fear DCI, it is a fickle thing that can happen to any of us even when we are diving within the guidelines. That's what makes it a little scary.

As a board certified internist however please don't forget your overall health as well. I hear from patients on an almost daily basis, "can't I just try diet and exercise to control my blood pressure?"

Well, yes and no. Unfortunately hypertension is a chronic condition that we start screening for at age 50 since that's when we expect to start identifying individuals with hypertension. The number rises to 65% population between ages 65 to 70.

If high blood pressure was like the color of your hair it would matter. But you are twice as likely to suffer either heart attack or stroke if left untreated. That would really ruin your diving.

Diovan is an angiotension receptor blocker. It is very similar to Altace which is an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor. Is is not really a diuretic, and it doesn't really cause kidney failure or kidney disease. In fact, they are so good at preventing renal failure in diabetic patients it is considered malpractice not to use either of the two in a diabetic patient. It keeps diabetic patients off of dialysis and actually helps prevents renal failure.

Special cells in the kidney release renin into the blood. It is then converted into angiotensin which is in turn split into vasopressin 1 and 2. Ace inhibitors work by blocking the conversion, receptor blockers like Diovan block the effects on the arteries.

The two drugs are often potentiated when you are mildly dehydrated. That is why they are often combined with a diuretic, makes them work better. But at the hospital your initially reported blood pressure was fine. It wasn't until you were more dehydrated that your blood pressure dropped but that wasn't the medicine per se.

From your story I don't think starting Diovan had a significant role in you getting DCI. I would agree that dehydration played a role.

Watch your blood pressure, meds are not the worst thing in the world and in the long run will prevent you from heart attack and stroke. Diet and exercise can only go so far. You are actually healthier on rx with better blood pressure than off with little higher blod pressures.

If it's any consolation, I have started to take Diovan rx myself at very low dose. A doctor friend of mine told me I have to take care of myself as well. This is one MD who follows his own advice. I want to stay healthy and keep diving.

 

[manni-yunk]

Tobin,

Thank you for sharing the details. I think detailed examples like this help keep everyone "in the know" and aware what can happen and how/why to not deny symptoms - and that sometimes it just happens - whether we think it should have or not.

Thanks again

 

[cool_hardware52]

Watch your blood pressure, meds are not the worst thing in the world and in the long run will prevent you from heart attack and stroke. Diet and exercise can only go so far. You are actually healthier on rx with better blood pressure than off with little higher blod pressures.

If it's any consolation, I have started to take Diovan rx myself at very low dose. A doctor friend of mine told me I have to take care of myself as well. This is one MD who follows his own advice. I want to stay healthy and keep diving.

Thank you for taking the time to respond, I do appreciate it. I do have a BP monitor and I use it. If my BP starts to creep back up I'll of course consider the benefits of the meds.

Right now I seldom see anything over 120 / 65, usually less.

Tobin

 

[beaverdivers]

Working too hard too soon could certainly be part of the puzzle

We have been using heart rate monitors for our students and our diving for the last year.

One of the things that we have noticed is the increase in heart rate as the diver leaves the water going from a weightless environment to having to deal with gravity.
This reality is intuitive, but to see it on a graph measured analytically gives us an idea of the degree of increased workload.

 

[bleeb]

We have been using heart rate monitors for our students and our diving for the last year.

One of the things that we have noticed is the increase in heart rate as the diver leaves the water going from a weightless environment to having to deal with gravity.
This reality is intuitive, but to see it on a graph measured analytically gives us an idea of the degree of increased workload.

Be nice if you could post an example, so that we can see how the 'diving', 'resting on surface' and 'climbing out' phases compare.

 

[cool_hardware52]

We have been using heart rate monitors for our students and our diving for the last year.

One of the things that we have noticed is the increase in heart rate as the diver leaves the water going from a weightless environment to having to deal with gravity.
This reality is intuitive, but to see it on a graph measured analytically gives us an idea of the degree of increased workload.

Might be scary :shocked2:. I know negotiating the surf with a set of doubles, and deco bottles can "elevate" my heart rate. One of the reasons I do intervals.

Tobin

 

[duke dive medicine]

We have been using heart rate monitors for our students and our diving for the last year.

One of the things that we have noticed is the increase in heart rate as the diver leaves the water going from a weightless environment to having to deal with gravity.
This reality is intuitive, but to see it on a graph measured analytically gives us an idea of the degree of increased workload.

Be nice if you could post an example, so that we can see how the 'diving', 'resting on surface' and 'climbing out' phases compare.

Ditto... are there any plans to publish this data?

 

[Kevlax2]

Thanks for sharing your experience.Just wondering how much this ordeal cost you?
cheers

I suffered an undeserved hit (shoulder) and took chamber ride (Table 6) a few years ago. The ER bill was approximately $5K and the chamber ride was approximately $27K, for a total of $32K. I was dropped off at the hospital with chamber by a friend so no ambulance/helicopter flights were needed.

The paperwork took several months to get sorted out, but in the end my regular insurance and DAN combined to cover everything. As I am sure Tobin is finding out, there is a mountain of paperwork and bills to sort through and it is very important to be organized and keep accurate records. One issue I had was my primary insurance provider took a LONG time to pay and I was getting second and third notices from the medical providers. I made a lot of phone calls (get names and keep records of who you talk to) and emails to both insurance and medical providers before it was all sorted out.

DAN came through as advertised and covered all remaining costs.

 

[beaverdivers]

bleeb & DDM, sorry to be out of the loop on this thread, we finally got snow - 23" in the last two days.

Moreover, we have the grand kids ( 1 & 4 yrs.) visiting, so our world is VERY active!

Also, we have been busy getting divers ready for their dive vacations w/ gear & training.

I just tried to copy and paste a dive, but it didn't work.

I will work on getting something posted.

I leave for the Scubapro Platinum Dealer meeting Sat, so it might not happen til next week.

Thanks for your interest,

Casey