Is it safe for me to dive again?

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MelindaM

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Messages
7
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Location
Georgia
# of dives
50 - 99
I am an experience diver and have been diving off and on for many years. To be brief, while diving in the Bahamas, during my first dive of the day, I became naseous while underwater. I felt better after our surface interval and decided to do the second five. The naseua got worse and puked upon surfacing. When the boat got back to shore, I immediately had severe vertigo once I got off. I was wearing a computer, and all my dive profiles were normal. I had no other symptoms other than the severe dizziness. I was put in the chamber for 5 hours the first day, and 2.5 the next. Within 24 hours after the dive I felt completely normal. I had a CAT scan that was normal, have seen an ENT and a scuba doctor. It has been determied that I had an undeserved hit. I have a appointment scheduled with a cardiologist to make sure that I don't have a PFO. If I do not, is it safe for me to dive again? I really want to do a live aboard to Coco Island.
 
MelindaM,

Stating the obvious but it could have been something as simple as contaminated air, and even after all the checking the decision will still come down to you. For your sake I hope you enjoy your next dives.

cheers
 
Melinda,
Sounds to me like you have done all the correct medical things. I'd get in touch with DAN and talk it over with them. And I'm quite sure I'd want to do something a little tamer than Cocos to make sure I was good to go. Cocos is no place to have this happen again.
 
Talk to DAN and your doctor, then to a local dive shop. Definitely:
1. Buy DAN insurance, and if it doesn't cover trip insurance (I forget if it does or not, I don't go on trips...), then
1a. Buy trip insurance. This way, if something happens, you are covered medically, and for the loss of your trip, I think, check the insurance policy well.
2. Go on a cheaper dive to make sure you will be fine. Consider it like a test drive of an automobile.
3. Have fun and dive safe!
 
Thanks, I have spoken with DAN and they've not heard of this happening before. I thought about contaminated air, but I was at resort and there were a lot of other people diving with me. And yes, I am planning to dive before I go to Coco.
 
I've put a suggestion into the Moderators to have this thread moved to the Dive Medicine forum, where more medical types hang out, instead of where the thread started out in Dr Deco, which is more about decompression science.
 
Thanks, I have spoken with DAN and they've not heard of this happening before. I thought about contaminated air, but I was at resort and there were a lot of other people diving with me. And yes, I am planning to dive before I go to Coco.
Was DAN consulted before the chamber rides? I was a little surprised that they did that to you on those symptoms. I used to know a lady who'd got ill on a dive simply because a lot of small, freshwater sponges were flowing thru the river dive leading her to motion sickness on the dive. She usually got ill on the boat rides out into the ocean, but this trip it was just the opposite. Just one example.

As far as bad air possibilities, I check mine before I dive it now - but hitting one or two bad tanks out of a group is certainly a possibility. Here is the scenario: Busy resort fires up the compressor, starts filling tanks, everything is fine for a while, then as the compressor heats up, problems start. Several tanks loaded on the boat, most clean, a few tainted, with different people reacting differently to small amounts of CO under pressure of the dives. Another example.

Who said you took a hit anyway...?
 


A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Moved to Diving Medicine
 
A Hyperbaric Medicine doctor that specializes in scuba medicine is the person that said I had an undeserved hit. There was an ENT on site when this happened that also thought the same thing. Before I was put in the chamber, DAN was consulted as to how best to handle my situation. Would bad air lead to severe vertigo on land but not on the boat?

If it was an undeserved hit, what are the chances of it happening again. Also, I have taken a Nitrox Course and was hoping to do my checkout dive. Would this lessen the chances?
 
Thanks for the information. I guess I'd best shut up for now. Hope you get some good answers from the physicians here, maybe after the weekend.
take care and good luck
 

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