High BP and Diving?

[Meng_Tze]

BTW, I am borderline HT, I have taken my BP before and after diving, and found that it drops a good 20 points after a dive and stays that way for about 2 days. I asked my doctor about it, and all he said was that he prescribes that I dive often.

My wife was there when he said it.

I could have kissed him.

You might try seeing if yours drops at all after diving.

That's funny!

 

[ruready7]

I have hypertension and have been on medication for about 4 years with it under control. I was lucky that when I asked my doctor about getting clearance to dive he said that it was fine for me to dive. He also happens to be a fellow diver. I do not know your whole medical condition, I would suggest contacting another doctor or better yet contacting DAN and letting them speak with your doctor to get the complete history to better help with making the correct decision. Wish you the best.

 

[ArcticDiver]

Understanding there are various causes of high BP, I'm wondering what the various knowledgeable people posting on this board think about the various medications available to treat hypertensive divers? Is there an overwhelming favorite? Is there one you would not use for treating a diver?

 

[irie1029]

Having just gone through the High whole BP routine (blood tests EKG daily monitoring) and after several med attempts along with diet and exercise to get it under control it was finally satabalized three months later at 120/80. I asked DAN if the meds (a combo) I ended up with were ok for diving. I provided the email response (which was in the same day) to my primary doctor. He then OK'd me diving provided my BP was in control.

DAN is awesome as a resource and I feel everyone should belong.

 

[Web Monkey]

Understanding there are various causes of high BP, I'm wondering what the various knowledgeable people posting on this board think about the various medications available to treat hypertensive divers? Is there an overwhelming favorite? Is there one you would not use for treating a diver?

DAN has several articles on exactly this subject. You should check it out.


Terry

 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

I have HT, controlled with beta blockers fors 4 years. My doc is clueless about diving, but I have had no issues. I do have friends on the same drug however and they had problems getting the right dose and had a harder time getting things under control, although they did eventually. So I assume there can be a significant difference from person to person. Based on this, I would not dive until you know for sure you are on the right dose, have everything under control and most importantly, don't mess up you med schedule just because you are on vacation.

 

[RickJames]

I actually became a DAN member today and contacted them after my enrollment and talked to one of their physcians. He was very knowledgeable and friendly (I told him my situation and the my medication I take for my BP and he said I should have no problem getting a clearance, but that I was doing the right thing by consulting and keeping my doctor in the loop) and gave me some physcians around my area to go to or told me to tell my current doctor to call the DAN hotline or the physcians he referred me to if he wanted to consult a local doctor on any questions he may have about SCUBA. It seems to be a really good move to be part of this DAN outfit. They seemed very helpful and eager to help a dive buddy out. Thanks for everyones input! :shelli: Have a drink on me!

 

[ArcticDiver]

DAN has several articles on exactly this subject. You should check it out.


Terry

I've used their reference library and the original research along with the opinions of qualified people I know.

The focus of this question is to get the opinions of the knowledgable people on THIS forum. The people here are not only qualified technically; they have enough experience to put things in context. Many times it is the gut that makes the best decisions.

 

[Guba]

I have high BP and have been diving with it for years (controlled with meds, of course), all with my doc's blessing.
About the only changes I make for diving are when I'm going to be doing multiple dives on consecutive days (like my forays to the Flower Gardens, where we make as many as 11 dives in just over two days). One of the meds I take is a diuretic. On these dive excursions, my doc gives me prescriptions that do not include the diuretic in order to keep blood volume high and lesson the risk of DCS.
Other than that, it's GO HAVE FUN!

 

[Web Monkey]

I've used their reference library and the original research along with the opinions of qualified people I know.

The focus of this question is to get the opinions of the knowledgable people on THIS forum. The people here are not only qualified technically; they have enough experience to put things in context. Many times it is the gut that makes the best decisions.

Unless the forum members are Pharmacists or MD's with experience in managing divers with hypertension, their opinions may not be especially useful for deciding which medication(s) to take.

If I say "I take XYZ and dive just fine", and you then go to your doc, get a prescription, go diving, then pass out when surfacing and drown (which BTW can be a side effect of at least one class of meds), I'd feel terrible. Which is why I recommended checking out DAN and talking to a qualified doctor.

Terry