Chest hurting a week after a deep dive

[DandyDon]

Thanks for your comments "Duke Dive Medicine". To clarify the pain - it was more like a squeeze on the lungs which made breathing feel a very slight strain. I had also been suffering from some stomach discomfort which led to reflux. I've suffered from this reflux problem since I've started diving - but the solution was simply to avoid overeating and avoid fried food. But the food that was being served was pretty good so I ate more than I should. I'm not too sure whether that contributed to the overall sense of unwellness but I found myself coughing underwater due to that reflux issue I think.

I don't know about regulations over there, but the meds to prevent that are Over The Counter here, economical and effective. I take one every morning of a dive trip. Choking underwater is not a good thing, and can even get serious.

I can offer no help on the chest pains. Good luck investigating that.

 

[sipadiver]

Yup. I'm going to see Dr Philip Susman - DAN recommended doctor - tomorrow. Will let the board know the outcome.

Spoke to the DAN hotline briefly too and the doc said its probably nothing to get too worried about - def not the bends, but should still get it checked out.

Overall I'm feeling pretty good - its just puzzling why my lungs felt constricted the day after the deep dive and after the flights back.

 

[The_Aviator_1]

Glad to hear it! I hope they can give you a clean bill of health!

 

[sipadiver]

So far so good. Saw the doctor. - everything is ship shape so far. He's sending me for an X-Ray and a respiratory test just to make sure.

I'm speculating here- but I probably had a mild case of pulmonary edema.

I had the lung squeeze/ coughing (but no blood) / and a wheezing sound in my breath when breathing consciously in and out. No other symptoms though - no fever, etc..
See freediving - squeeze

 

[DandyDon]

Get suggestions on antacids too.

 

[TSandM]

I think pulmonary edema is very unlikely, given that you had recurrent symptoms when you were not anywhere near the water. Reflux is probably more likely, but your doctor will be able to do a much better job than we can on sorting out the issues.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

... and if you were having pulmonary edema outside the water, you'd probably have a serious cardiac issue that would have declared itself well before this point. I still think that needs to be investigated if it hasn't already. The title of your thread is "chest hurting a week after a deep dive" and your initial description of your symptoms was classic for acute coronary syndrome. Reflux/hiatal hernia could explain your symptoms, though.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[sipadiver]

I had a health scare back in 2008 when I got a bit tired after going to the gym to work out. A late night and a breakfast consisting of mainly coffee and a chocolate bar was probably the cause. But my gym instructor got me to go to the doctor to get it checked out. He sent me for an ECG which came back with the headline - "Within normal range". But the doctor blew his fuse when he saw a spike in the reading which indicated that blood was flowing back. He told me I was having a heart attack which made me really worried and I rushed off to a private clinic to get it checked out. The nurses at the clinic were amused for some reason when they saw the referral. And after undergoing cardio tests and examination (which costs $600), the specialist said that my readings were within the normal range and told me to get a good night sleep.

Anyhow, I'm waiting for the respiratory test results now. I will get my heart checked out next week; but the doctor I saw this week doesn't think it was necessary. But I might as well.

Meanwhile I went for a 7km run the other day and was OK.

I did the respiratory test and the chest x-ray already. Just waiting for the results now.

 

[sipadiver]

The Respiratory test and chest x-ray came back - good. No problems were detected.

My ECG scared the heck out of my doctor though. I had to reassure him that it was probably nothing (based on that experience back in 2008). After checking with a cardio he calmed down a fair bit. He got me to see him and undergo a cardiogram and a stress test. The results came back good - the heart beat sounded a bit rough according to the cardio but the tests were all A1.

Not sure what the problem - chest compression pain was. But everything seems ok now. Flew overseas last week and all seems well.

 

[uncfnp]

A wild shot in the dark and not classic symptoms but with all the negative tests so far...any history/risk factors for gallbladder disease?