I got bent without reason

[tc]

Thanks for posting your story- don't sweat it, stuff happens all the time.

Were you diving a computer that day? I'd be curious if you downloaded the profile, always interesting to look over in these cases.

Glad you're feeling better!

 

[tc]

I am not in medicine but I beleive you should be tested for a Patent Foramen Oval (PFO test)...Check out link.


DAN Divers Alert Network : Patent Foramen Ovale

Maybe some of the docs can weigh in on this but most of the PFO hits I've heard about don't present as joint pain/swelling.

 

[Scott L]

Maybe some of the docs can weigh in on this but most of the PFO hits I've heard about don't present as joint pain/swelling.

I defer to you and others on this matter... Can you send a ping to one?

 

[trigfunctions]

There can be a risk for DCS if you perform strenuous activity after diving. Could the fishing and/or the cleaning the boat and gear have been strenuous? Also, it's interesting that your knee swelled up - could the 2 1/2 drive be a factor, with your knee in a bent position? Just some thoughts.

 

[Scott L]

Thanks for your post! Did DAN take care of most of the cost?

DAN is supplemental (secondary) to one's primary health insurance...

 

[irishsquid]

There can be a risk for DCS if you perform strenous activity after diving. Could the fishing and/or the cleaning the boat and gear have been strenous? Also, it's interesting that your knee swelled up - could the 2 1/2 drive be a factor, with your knee in a bent position? Just some thoughts.

I was thinking the same thing.

 

[tatek]

The knee swelling seems a little unusual, but I know of no reason why a PFO hit couldn't give joint pain (it just depends where the bubbles settle down and cause trouble). From the information given, this sounds like an "undeserved hit", and while sometimes s---t happens, an undeserved hit makes me wonder about a PFO. As the DAN article points out, an echocardiogram with a bubble study will show a PFO (but a regular echo may not).

 

[sublime250]

DAN is supplemental (secondary) to one's primary health insurance...

My limited understanding of DAN was that most regular insurance policies do not cover diving accidents-

 

[Scott L]

My limited understanding of DAN was that most regular insurance policies do not cover diving accidents-

I am a career property & casualty broker with a limited working knowledge of health insurance. I will check with my expert sources on how most carriers cover recreational diving then report back tomorrow night...By the way, I have DAN insurance for all the same reasons as everyone else but especially as I generally elect high deductiables as I have been very heathy thus far.

 

[Ken Kurtis]

You seemed to have followed all the rules, so I'd chalk this up as an undeserved hit.

First of all, let me be clear that I believe no one "deserves" to get bent. (And I'm not implying that the previous poster felt that either.) That being said . . .

I really HATE the term "undeserved hit." I think a better term would be "unexplained hit."

There's always a reason someone gets bent. It just may be that we can't find it or it's not readily apparent. Others have mentioned dehydration. There are also small physiological changes your body goes through each day that changes what "your" nitrogen limit is at a specific point in time.

But I'd love it if as a diving community if we'd abandon the term "undeserved hit." It almost implies that there was nothing you could have done differently, nothing wrong, so nothing you should change or investigate futher, and nitrogen/bends happens.

But "unexplained hit" means we don't know, we may never know, and underscores the sometimes pernicious nature of nitrogen to the point that maybe we'd give it even more respect (and a healthy dose of caution) than we sometimes do now.

- Ken