How do you know if you have sub-clinical or type I DCS?

[wreckchick]

The one dead giveaway for me is if symptoms resolve on 100% O2. If you're not sure and can get it, put yourself on O2 and see what happens. Normal aches and pains don't feel any better at all but ALL types of DCS will show symptomatic improvement. If you're feeling better, go to the chamber, do not pass go.

Rachel

 

[cerich]

OK, so it sounds as if it is minor pain or "niggles" it is not something that needs to be treated anyways. .

The Doc can chime in here, however I for one dislike that approach.

Type 1 DCS (classic presentation joint pain) minor pain or "niggles" could be over exertion or actual DCS, sometimes hard to tell, if ignored when low scale it possibly will self correct meaning the diver may not know for sure the cause.

However minor pain or niggles can also be the first stages of Type 2 DCS which over a few hours can go from "niggles' to not being able to walk, hold your bladder etc.
Type 2 seems to be more common among recreational divers because of the profiles vs. commercial divers (much more controlled environment where DCS is almost expected and certainly planned for). When ignored every hour adds to the permanent damage. Reversal via re-compression is much less likely to be 100% vs. Type 1 and you can expect multiple chamber treatments. Getting back in the water after a bad type 2 incident is very much a question. Thankfully, type 2 will often present itself during a quick field neurological which is something I teach in every rescue, leadership and tech course.

The secret with any type of DCS is QUICK action, just ignoring minor pain or "niggles" could end up being the end of your diving and possibly many other activities you enjoy.

If you are doing multiple repetitive dives, aggressive profiles never ignore anything out of the normal your body does.

The best cure however is prevention.

Slow assents less than 30 feet per min
safety stops
well rested, well hydrated
no heavy exercise after diving
avoid booze pre and post dive

 

[The Chairman]

I developed real shoulder pain in the L shoulder after a dive on Tenneco Towers a year and a half ago. I ALWAYS have pain in my R shoulder, so this was a surprise. I went to see the hyperbaric staff at Florida Hospital and they put me in the chamber. When it became apparent that pressure did NOT alleviate any pain, they ruled out DCS. I had a shoulder pull instead. According to the Docs, the only way to differentiate between the two was to go for a chamber ride.

FWIW, I am not a medical doctor. I doctor sick computer Networks. Or at least I USED to!

 

[Dr Deco]

Hello khacken:

Mild DCS

In the laboratory, mild DCS is differentiated from sprains and strains by the “test f pressure.” This is basically the only method; it is not possible in the field. If the profiles (or profiles) were of minimal gas loading, it is probably not DCS. If the gas loads were appreciable, and there was exercise involved, then the probability of DCS increases. Always remember that hauling equipment can be a causative factor for pain. Many people experience joint pain, and they never go diving.

Pain Level

Type I DCS probably appears more often than one acknowledges. This is, I believe, the reason why Type II DCS is seen more often in recreational divers than Type I. Recreational divers simply do not recognize it. In the laboratory, small aches and pains are checked and very often diagnosed as mild Type I. These would be passed over in the field.

In a laboratory setting, it is not unusual to hear test subjects remark, “Is that what DCS feels like? I had that happen before, and I just didn’t recognize it.” Many divers believe that DCS will appear as a pain so great that you will be almost in agony. That is not the case.

Dr Deco :doctor:

 

[lamont]

I came down with mild flu symptoms last week. It was just fever, aches and fatigue which could have been DCS. I was completely asymptomatic for 24h post diving though, and my profiles were ultra-conservative since I was supporting people who were hanging on deco. If it had hit 24h earlier it would have been tough to differentiate from DCS though...