Diving after heart attack with stent placement

[Rubidium777]

I have done about 45 dives, but has been a long time and am hesitating to get into it again. I live in the Pacific NW where the water is usually close to 50 degrees.
The last time I dove was about 8 years ago and had a heart attack with 2 stents about 6 years ago. Am on BP meds as well as Cholesterol meds. Don't have any fainting or issues like that but do find myself getting a bit off balance at times. Being I am now 72 not sure if I could carry all the weights and gear for shore diving unless I get a lot stronger.
Curious your thoughts on the wisdom of diving again, or is in not worth the risk ?
Thanks
Jim

 

[rongoodman]

I have done about 45 dives, but has been a long time and am hesitating to get into it again. I live in the Pacific NW where the water is usually close to 50 degrees.
The last time I dove was about 8 years ago and had a heart attack with 2 stents about 6 years ago. Am on BP meds as well as Cholesterol meds. Don't have any fainting or issues like that but do find myself getting a bit off balance at times. Being I am now 72 not sure if I could carry all the weights and gear for shore diving unless I get a lot stronger.
Curious your thoughts on the wisdom of diving again, or is in not worth the risk ?
Thanks
Jim

Only your cardiologist can say for sure. There was a guy on my recent trip who was limited to snorkeling but his MI was only a few months ago. Getting in better shape for diving certainly won't hurt your overall health and improving your balance could help prevent a catastrophic fall in the future. (The mortality associated with falls and older folks is just awful.) You don't have to dive in your cold local waters either.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

I have done about 45 dives, but has been a long time and am hesitating to get into it again. I live in the Pacific NW where the water is usually close to 50 degrees.
The last time I dove was about 8 years ago and had a heart attack with 2 stents about 6 years ago. Am on BP meds as well as Cholesterol meds. Don't have any fainting or issues like that but do find myself getting a bit off balance at times. Being I am now 72 not sure if I could carry all the weights and gear for shore diving unless I get a lot stronger.
Curious your thoughts on the wisdom of diving again, or is in not worth the risk ?
Thanks
Jim

Jim, that's a question only your cardiologist can answer as @rongoodman said. There's too much individual variability in events like this to get an accurate answer via the internet. Your cardiologist would look at whether your cardiac function was preserved after your MI, your current cardiovascular health and physical condition, and what the cause of you feeling off balance is. Just going by what you posted though, I would lean towards no, with the reminder that immersion itself (as with snorkeling) can put a strain on the heart that it would not experience on land. If you have low cardiac function to begin with, strenuous exercise while immersed could harm you.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[Rubidium777]

Jim, that's a question only your cardiologist can answer as @rongoodman said. There's too much individual variability in events like this to get an accurate answer via the internet. Your cardiologist would look at whether your cardiac function was preserved after your MI, your current cardiovascular health and physical condition, and what the cause of you feeling off balance is. Just going by what you posted though, I would lean towards no, with the reminder that immersion itself (as with snorkeling) can put a strain on the heart that it would not experience on land. If you have low cardiac function to begin with, strenuous exercise while immersed could harm you.

Best regards,
DDM

Great advice, Thanks, DDM. I have throughly enjoyed diving but there are plenty of other activities to enjoy. I justified an electric mountain bike and that gets me out on the trails with assurance, if I need it, electric assist on the hills

 

[Rubidium777]

Only your cardiologist can say for sure. There was a guy on my recent trip who was limited to snorkeling but his MI was only a few months ago. Getting in better shape for diving certainly won't hurt your overall health and improving your balance could help prevent a catastrophic fall in the future. (The mortality associated with falls and older folks is just awful.) You don't have to dive in your cold local waters either.

My attack was several years ago and the BEST thing I did was three months of supervised excercise/therapy classes at local hospital. I learned that I had an Atrial fib issues after excercising that I didn't realize which bearing down seems to stop. I wish there were more programs like that for the public (only one hospital out of 4 in the area had a rehab program.

 

[Dr Simon Mitchell]

Hello Jim,

Actually, with all due respect to Ron and DDM, your cardiologist is not necessarily the best, or at least, not the optimal sole source of relevant advice (unless they are someone like Doug Ebersole who is also a diver). The cardiologist does, of course, have the best insight into your cardiac status and may have formally assessed your post-stent exercise capacity. This is obviously vital information, but most cardiologists have little knowledge of the functional requirements and physiological challenges of diving, and may therefore struggle to calibrate what they know of your heart against the realities of diving. As a result, I have seen excessively conservative and excessively permissive decisions around diving from cardiologists in situations like yours. The optimal source of advice in this situation would be a diving cardiologist (like Doug - of which there are relatively few) or a diving physician who has been provided an objective assessment of your cardiac status by your cardiologist.

Your story potentially provides a good illustration of this. Without knowing any detail, it is possible that your main problem is physical capacity to cope with the normal rigors of diving such as the example you provide (walking into the water from shore wearing scuba gear). As Ron points out, a fall in that setting at your age could be catastrophic. With that in mind, and also your history of going in and out of atrial fibrillation, I am erring toward the same view as DDM (diving best avoided). However, these opinions are just illustrative. As DDM points out, this issue cannot be resolved on the internet. If you wish to pursue it, then evaluation by appropriate experts is advised.

Simon M

 

[Endler's]

I think getting back in the water is a worthy goal. Give DAN a call to find a local diving Cardiologist, and get diving!

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

Hello Jim,

Actually, with all due respect to Ron and DDM, your cardiologist is not necessarily the best, or at least, not the optimal sole source of relevant advice (unless they are someone like Doug Ebersole who is also a diver). The cardiologist does, of course, have the best insight into your cardiac status and may have formally assessed your post-stent exercise capacity. This is obviously vital information, but most cardiologists have little knowledge of the functional requirements and physiological challenges of diving, and may therefore struggle to calibrate what they know of your heart against the realities of diving. As a result, I have seen excessively conservative and excessively permissive decisions around diving from cardiologists in situations like yours. The optimal source of advice in this situation would be a diving cardiologist (like Doug - of which there are relatively few) or a diving physician who has been provided an objective assessment of your cardiac status by your cardiologist.

Your story potentially provides a good illustration of this. Without knowing any detail, it is possible that your main problem is physical capacity to cope with the normal rigors of diving such as the example you provide (walking into the water from shore wearing scuba gear). As Ron points out, a fall in that setting at your age could be catastrophic. With that in mind, and also your history of going in and out of atrial fibrillation, I am erring toward the same view as DDM (diving best avoided). However, these opinions are just illustrative. As DDM points out, this issue cannot be resolved on the internet. If you wish to pursue it, then evaluation by appropriate experts is advised.

Simon M

Thanks Simon. I DM'd him the number to Virginia Mason hyperbarics earlier.

 

[RobPNW]

I have a similar background and haven’t had an issue diving because of it. If there’s an issue it’s usually an old injury or congestion.

 

[scubadada]

Hi @Rubidium777

Your MI was 8 years ago and your stents were 6 years ago. Why are you only reconsidering diving now? If you were interested in continuing your diving, seems like you would have pursued this years ago.

I have a medical history different, but similar, to yours. I did not give up diving for any considerable period of time. I am 70 years old and recently returned from a liveaboard trip to the Revillagigedos. I have exercised continuously and did not become deconditioned, as you may currently find yourself.

DM me if you would like to discuss any details.