Diving, 24 hour surface interval, then flying

[augustg]

Hi All,

Just got back from Puerto Vallarta and had a great time diving.

Last dive was around 10AM and was a short, deep one...30 minutes, max depth 112 feet.

My return flight home was around 4PM the day after my last dive.

It was a great dive, but around 80 feet I noticed what I would feel to be a very mild narced feeling...no big deal, felt it before, had a great dive and was enjoying the boat ride back by 10:35AM.

Had a few beers that night, but kept it really mellow, had a nice meal and 10 hours of sleep.

The next day was rather hot and by 1PM I wasn't feeling all that great. Shade, breeze and lots of water made me feel better, but I felt like I had a mild flu.

I started becoming a little nervous about flying, wondering if the dive had anything to do with the way that I was feeling.

After the dive, my computer gave me a 17 hour no-fly and by the time the plane departed I had at least 28 hours at sea-level.

I took the flight, felt fine, but wondered what the folks at scubaboard would do...would you have still taken the flight feeling as I did?

 

[Dive-aholic]

Sounds like you were probably a little overheated and dehydrated. Mild flu like symptoms aren't indicative of DCS. DCS aches aren't so much generalized like flu aches are. Again, hot, beer the night before, water and cool air made you feel better. I'd fly.

 

[mike_s]

could have been "montezumas revenge" also since you were in 'old mexico'. That will dehydrate you also.

 

[H2Andy]

hmm.... i agree with Dive-aholic and mike

narcosis has nothing to do with DCI, and you were probably tired and de-hydrated,
and the alcohol didn't help, but yeah, i would have taken the flight

 

[augustg]

Thanks. I really appreciate the input and I always learn from this board.

I actually put a new rule into the logbook; no alcoholic beverages the night before flying after a dive trip.

Peace,

Aug

 

[DocVikingo]

Hi Aug,

I'm not convinced that you've learned anything of value yet.

It's not entirely clear what is meant by a "few beers." However, having a beer or two, or other very modest quantity of alcoholic beverage, with a nice meal many hours after the last dive and prior to 10 hours of restful sleep would not be expected to cause a healthy diver to experience flu-like symptoms the following day. An imprudent amount would be expected to result in hangover-like symptoms, but you report having "kept it really mellow."

Have previous occasions when you've had a beer or two with a meal and then a good night's sleep prior to returning home from a dive trip caused you to experience such symptoms?

It might be helpful if you could describe with greater precision what signs and symptoms you developed.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[augustg]

Hi Doc,

The night of the dive I consumed 3 beers total so I doubt that this was a hangover as I can usually handle more than that without ill-effects the next day.

The next day I felt nausea, light-headed, fatigued, constipated, and overheated.

I have traveled to Mexico several times and never felt ill before.

I think that my concern was not that I was suffering from any dcs, but could it have put me at risk as I was flying the day that I felt ill even though I had a good 24 hours of surface time before the flight.

Looking back now, I really feel that I was just dehydrated and needed to drink a lot more water the day before flying.

I have to throw out a general thank you to scubaboard. Just by reading this board I learned so much that contributed to me enjoying my dives on this last trip.

Peace,

Aug

 

[Dive-aholic]

Aug, the symptoms you just described are all very indicative of dehydration, which btw is what causes a hangover.

Best practice will be to drink a couple of glasses of water after drinking alcohol. This will counteract the alcohol somewhat and help you avoid feeling ill. Actually, you should always hydrate yourself, whether you're diving or not.

I don't believe there was any higher risk for dcs that long after the dive. It's typically within the 1st 24 hours that you need to worry about it.

 

[DocVikingo]

Hi Aug,

Scuba and Puerto Vallarta spring weather certainly do dispose to dehydration and it is possible that your symptoms were related to a lack of optimal hydration.

Still, as regards what you learned here there is no apparent reason to give up a beer or two with dinner the night before returning home from a dive trip. While beer is not as hydrating as an equivalent amount of water, you'll still end up with more H2O available to your body than had you not imbibed them. Perhaps a good alternative would be take extra care to hydrate during the trip and to have a large glass or two of water along with the beer at the evening meal.

Regarding if it was safe to fly, nausea, constipation and feeling overheated are not typical symptoms of DCI. While fatigue and to a lesser extent light-headedness can be, they also are consistent with a number of other conditions, including dehydration.

Nausea, constipation, fatigue and light-headedness which are not incapacitating and respond well to measures such as relaxing in a cool spot and drinking lots of water would not generally be considered a contraindication to flying in a diver who is 28 hours post-scuba and not showing other possible features of DCI.

In any event, empirically we can conclude that in your case it was safe to fly ; )

This is educational only and does not constitute or imply a doctor-patient relationship. It is not medical advice to you or any other individual and should not be construed as such.

Regards.

DocVikingo

 

[DocVikingo]

Although it certainly can contribute, it is possible stay well hydrated and still get a vicious hangover.

The proximal cause of a hangover is consuming more alcohol than you can effectively metabolize. Once this happens, all manner of things go awry and the primary causes include the build-up of toxic by-products, most especially acetaldehyde and ethanoate; the blood becoming more acidic than is normal; and anti-diuretic hormone (ADH) levels rising, then falling, both abnormally.

Regards,

DocVikingo