A quick question about diving after a stroke. I had a stroke on 4/12/2008 caused by a clot. In the emergency room some 10 hours later a MRI showed it was my second stroke (I thought I had one 6 months before but chalked it up to a "brain fart" because my face didn't droop ) My Dr says the first stroke was in my brain stem and should have killed me, (All symptoms were gone after two days of hard work) and my second stroke was in a very forgiving part of the brain. so forgiving that he could operate and remove 1/2 of this part of my brain and in 5 days I would have no lasting affects. My recovery from both strokes was very fast and at the moment i have a little dizzyness when I over do it and this seems to be subsiding as every day goes by. My question is are there any corrilations between diving and strokes (kicking another clot). Every Dr I've spoken with says I should be able to dive, but my famly worries.Hell I worry!!!
I've made many lifestyle changes in icluding No coffee( the ONLY beverage I drank all day ) and tobacco.(kinda like closing the barn door after the horse got away...LOL)
Please advise.
TIA's are episodes of decreased or lost consciousness due to decreased blood flow to a portion of the brain. Occurring underwater they can lead to drowning and/or arterial gas embolism.
Transient Ischemic Attacks are included in the list of 'Neurological Absolute Contraindications'. These include:
History of Seizure disorder Loss or change in the level of consciousness underwater is deadly.
After head injury, disallow diving during that period of time that the diver is at risk for seizures. The diver should be completely free of changes in the level of sensorium, symptom free and be cleared by a neurologist as being free of seizure activity.
Intracranial tumor or aneurysm
History of TIA (transient ischemic attacks)or CVA (Cerebral vascular accidents)
History of spinal cord injury, disease or surgery with residual sequelae. This includes a history of having had Type II neurological DCS with permanent neurological deficits.
A history of unexplained syncopal episodes, whether cardiovascular or neurogenic.
Peripheral neuropathies are disqualifying. Symptoms related to peripheral neuropathy mimic neurologic decompression sickness.
Individuals with a history of transient ischemic attack (TIA) must undergo evaluation for cerebrovascular or cardiac disease before being considered for sport diving. Often a TIA is an indication of carotid disease, intracardiac thrombus, endocarditis, or valvular heart disease. These must be ruled out before consideration for diving.
Diver's Alert Network has the following to say about "stroke" in an article in the 'Alert Diver', May-June, 1999.
Stroke, or loss of blood supply to the brain, causes damage to part of the brain, or bleeding from a blood vessel in the brain, which results in similar injury. Strokes come in all sizes and shapes, and the resulting disability depends on size and location of the event.
Fitness & Diving:
Most strokes occur in older people. The stroke itself identifies the person as one who has advanced arterial disease, thus a higher expectation of further stroke or heart attack.
The extent of disability caused by the stroke (e.g., paralysis, vision loss) may determine fitness to dive.
Vigorous exercise, lifting heavy weights and using the Valsalva method for ear-clearing when diving all increase arterial pressure in the head and may increase the likelihood of a recurrent hemorrhage.
While diving in itself entails exposure to elevated partial pressures and elevated hydrostatic pressure, it does not cause stroke.
There is certainly increased risk in diving for someone has experienced a stroke. Exceptional circumstances may exist, such as cerebral hemorrhage in a young person in whom the faulty artery has been repaired with little persisting damage. This type of recovery may permit a return to diving, with small risk. Each instance, however, requires a case-by-case decision, made with the advice of the treating physician, family and diving partners. Consulting a neurologist familiar with diving medicine is also advisable.
There is a similar concern for significant residual symptoms.
