miked:
Dr Deco,
(or any of our resident medical experts)
I'd like to know if there is any research,etc. indicating a connection between high cholesterol levels and increased incidence of/risk of DCS.
I did a search on SB, but found nothing more recent than 2001.
Thanks,
Mike
Mike,
I'm not a doctor, but I have done a lot of research recently on this topic. Here are a few abstracts that might interest you:
2004- Brain magnetic resonance imaging, aerobic power, and metabolic parameters among 30 asymptomatic scuba divers.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...d&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15531999&query_hl=1
"In our study, we did not find a significant relationship between the lesions of the central nervous system, and the age, depth of the dives, number of dives, and ergometric performances (maximal oxygen uptake, V.O (2max), serum level of blood lactate). Nevertheless, we found a significant relationship between the lesions of the central nervous system and ascent rate faster than 10 meters per minute (r = 0.57; p = 0.003) or presence of high level of cholesterolemia (r = 0.6; p = 0.001)."
1999- Study on testing method of susceptibility to decompression sickness in aerospace.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...d&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=11766705&query_hl=1
"Incidence of decompression sickness was significantly higher in subjects aged 30-36 years than in those aged 19-20 years under the same experimental conditions. In the older subjects body-fat, blood cholesterole and noradrenaline in urine during experiment were significantly higher than those in the younger subjects."
1988- Blood factors and venous gas emboli: surface to 429 mmHg (8.3 psi).
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...ed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=3363750&query_hl=1
"Significant (P less than 0.05) differences include the following: higher levels of cholesterol in the bubble-prone males and combined subjects (males and females) than in their resistant counterparts..."
1986- Blood biochemical factors in humans resistant and susceptible to formation of venous gas emboli during decompression.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...ed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=3698990&query_hl=1
"Pre-exposure blood samples from subjects who were susceptible to formation of venous gas emboli (VGE) during decompression exhibited significantly greater levels of total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol..."
Cameron
