got the skin bends?????

[divingTim]

Was out on a 2 tank charter (departied 9:30 am) to a couple local wrecks, both at hardly more than 80', first dive was a max depth of 80', and a total dive time of 39 minutes on a 32% mix, second was to a max depth of 81" and a total dive time of 38 on a 32% mix, both dive were well within my ndl limit, with an average ascent rate of 6 to 7' per minute with a 3 minute safety stop at 15 to 20 ft, and a 1hr 14 min interval, I like to think i stayed well lubed up drinking 3 to 4 bottles of water through out the time while on the boat, back home by 3 as my wife, a few friends and I were heading out for a bite and a movie, nothing at this point i had noticed the slight rash on my abdomen by about 6, no other symptoms were apparent and I felt quite good,and by the end of the movie appro 8:45 (transformers by the way.....pretty cool)all signs were gone, but what i cant figure out is to why???????? I have decided I will take a few weeks off of diving, as I have been in the water more that I usually do.

forgot to add this was my second incident in 2 weeks, the fisrt incident , I attribute the entire episode to my own fault, dehydrated, 3 tank dive (2 at 90 feet and the third at 80')and pushed my ndl to the limits.

Cannot seem to upload the dive profile, but will continue to try, it may appear that i need to change the format

 

[Teamcasa]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Moved to Diving Medicine

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[DandyDon]

Did you not call DAN for a phone consultation?

 

[divingTim]

No i have not, maybe im ignorant to the network, but I am not a member and assumed only members had that privledge. But would not hesitate to call if it were an option, but, would it be wrong to say that its far to late to call now.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Doing those dive profiles on a 32% mix (END of approx. 65 fsw) with a reasonable surface interval implies a fairly moderate nitrogen load.
Skin rashes can be caused by a few different things, one of which is DCS.
It would be helpful to rule out contact dermatitis, neoprene allergy, and stings associated with exposure to marine critters.
Do you recall any strenuous physical exertion during the dive or post-dive?
If you don't mind, could you give us more details regarding the skin rash?
Did it itch?
How large was it?
Any other descriptive features (purple or red coloring, "marbling" appearance, etc.)?
Were there bumps?
Do you have any known allergies to anything?
How long was the rash there? It sounds like it went away rather quickly.
Did you take anything (oral OTC meds or lotion) while you had the rash?
Did the meds help?
Any other associated symptoms that are noteworthy?

DCS is a very rare occurrence if a recreational diver conducts conservative dives with respect to nitrogen loading.
I find it rather concerning that this is the second "incident" in 2 weeks. You didn't give any details about the first incident. Similar? Onset of skin rash several hours later? Did you seek treatment at a hyperbaric chamber? Did the rash go away as quickly?
It might be prudent to investigate whether you have a medical predisposition to DCS.

 

[DandyDon]

No i have not, maybe im ignorant to the network, but I am not a member and assumed only members had that privledge. But would not hesitate to call if it were an option, but, would it be wrong to say that its far to late to call now.

Ok, I guess you Canadians don't need to think about dive insurance until you plan an out of country dive trip, maybe - altho there are sites on our border where you might find yourself looking at the possibility of going to a US medical facility. DAN is not just about insurance tho...

Yes, you can call DAN even if you are not a member. I had my daughter call their emergency number recently on a weekend about my grandson's ear injury from free diving. They were very helpful. Yeah, if the symptoms are gone, you may as well wait until tomorrow and call during business hours: DAN Divers Alert Network : Contact DAN

You can be a member and receive the magazine without buying the insurance. Great organization and not expensive to belong.

Your dive travel may take you out of the country, or at least to dive sites on the St.Lawrence, etc. so you might get dive insurance - at least the middle plan, not the cheapest one which is a dog for so little less.​

This really should be common knowledge up there, from classes, dive shops, dive clubs, discussions on your Canadian forum here, etc. and I have to wonder why not?

 

[divingTim]

yes it was the purplish redish marbling, and it was only on my upper abdomin, approx 10 " across and only 3 or 4" verticle, very minor itch barely noticable, no bumps, duration of rash was 3 to 4 hrs, took no meds and no other symptoms were apparent, was wearing drysuit so neo allergy is out, no known allergies to anything. The first time was was three tank dives to slightly deeper max depth 95 and 90 for the first 2 and the third was 80, symtoms were the same and disapated within a few hours aswell, but those dives were streched to the limit, and very little hydration.

I took a photo of the dive profiles, they are up in the origional post.

 

[koyote1111]

Sounds very similar to the initial symptoms that I had prior to the onset of DCS. Had the bruising/purplish/reddish marbling appearance in my upper abdominal region. I didn't associate bruising with DCS as it is usually not listed as a symptom. You will sometimes see it listed/described in more detailed publications under the heading of "Rash".

My symptoms did not begin with a rash...simply bruising. So, I continued to dive thinking that it was perhaps related to tightening my BCD a bit too much. I also rationalized this reason because I had just finished my fourth consecutive day of diving (2 dives per day). Had not done that before...so, I just thought it was gear related.

However, another day of diving, I'd moved into more "full-blown" DCS and ended up doing five treatments in the chamber.

Hope you will play it safe! While getting treatment I was told that most cases of DCS are unexplained/undeserved. So...I am now aware that some adjustments are in order for me to work with my individual physiology.

Best wishes to you...and do hope that you will find out if this was indeed a DCS symptom for you.

 

[DandyDon]

Put DAN's numbers in your cell phone anyway, just in case.

 

[Bollox]

From your descriptions I would say it is very likely those two occurrences were cutaneous DCI as in cutis marmorata. A picture of the rash would have been a lot more helpful than of the profiles though. Although the posted profiles are not really aggressive, they are deep and long enough to produce those symptoms in some cases. The first time you had those symptoms the profiles had a much higher risk for DCI. The reason you had them a second time around, with a less aggressive profile, could have been "leftovers" from the first incident. I will leave it to the doctors to go into more details on all that. I think you should wait not less than two weeks before the next dive, although I would recommend four weeks and seeing a diving doctor, experienced with those kind of injuries.