long term diving effects

[commdiver_12]

hi , i have been diving for 18 years, commercially for 14 of them. the majority of this was inland between 1 - 60 ft. my deepest dive is 170 ft. Recently i have been diagnosed with vascular disease in my brain, with demyelining. my question is could this be related to diving , ive never suffered a dcs hit , at least that i know of or that was apparant at the time. altho i know the depths arent that deep i averaged about four hours a day for 10 years bottomtime. my longest time ever in a hat was 12 hours but this was at only 8 ft of water approx. lol btw i should add i have always followed the tables religiously and so did co-workers , any info appreciated , thx jim g

 

[Papa_Bear]

Have you asked your Doc? It doesn't sound like there is a connection from what I can find "Most of the dysmyelinating disorders are caused by metabolic defects that present in infancy." I see no mention of a relationship? I have been diving since 1972 and other than my hair turning gray, adding wight, lose of muscle, and a whole bunch of other things no effect Hey wait a minute! A little humor never hurts! Get a referral to a Neurologist! Good luck and keep the faith, life is in the journey not the destination!

Try this link: http://jnnp.bmj.com/ And don't hesitate to contact DAN!

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I'm very sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis. "Vascular disease of the brain" can refer to many different disorders. It would be helpful if you let us know the medical name of your specific condition.

Even if we knew your specific disorder, it would probably be impossible to establish a causal link to diving. As a commercial diver, it sounds like you always dived according to the tables (U.S. Navy?/DSAT?). The fact that you never suffered a DCS hit is good news. One thing to keep in mind is that the kind of daily decompression stress associated with commercial diving is above and beyond what the tables were ever designed for. Long-term effects of decompression stress are simply not well known. DCS can certainly irreversibly damage neurons within the central nervous system but this usually occurs within an acute timeframe (minutes to hours following diving). It's possible that there may have been additive subclinical effects that over time culminated in your present condition. Lots of unknowns for sure.

I hope that you have found a good neurologist with whom you can discuss your treatment options. I second Papa Bear's positive sentiments.

 

[Papa_Bear]

A very good friend of mine dived for the MWD for thirty five years and had over 14000 dives and was an instructors instructor! Even taught commercial diving at ocean engineering! He retired with no ill effects and a health check every year for 35 years! We went to Cozumel and he collapsed after his second dive on the boat deck and was flown to Miami were they didn't expect him to live! He is back 99% but can never dive again!

It was the hole in his heart that all manuals are born with and no one caught it! He got a small bubble through it and had a brain embolism! He was lucky to have mad it, so you never know the when or where! Was it dive related? How was it missed? In my opinion it was always there and diving was just the catalyst that brought the bubble and the hole together! So it was a one in 14000 chance!

 

[Diver0001]

Jim,

You might want to look at these two websites to try getting an idea what to do next.

Multiple sclerosis and Diving
Demyelinating disease - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I'm *not* a doctor but just judging by the list of symptoms for demyelinating conditions they seem familiar to me because there is a lot of overlap with the symptoms for DCS condition.

I obviously don't know anything about your medical history or why they diagnosed you with a demyelinating condition but given your occupation and the list of symptoms then one of the possibilities that I would be researching if I were you is that you *may* have, in fact, had a DCS hit that was misdiagnosed as something else.

If I were you I would get a second opinion from another doctor with a thorough working knowledge of diving medicine AND demyelinating diseases.

Good luck

R..

 

[DocVikingo]

Have you asked your Doc? It doesn't sound like there is a connection from what I can find "Most of the dysmyelinating(sp?) disorders are caused by metabolic defects that present in infancy."

Hi Papa_Bear,

The most common demyelination disorder is multiple sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune rather than a metabolic disease.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[DocVikingo]

Recently i have been diagnosed with vascular disease in my brain, with demyelining.

Hi Jim,

The long term adverse effects of commercial/professional diving, with or without a history of diagnosed DCI, can include dysbaric osteonecrosis, reduced hearing acuity, tinnitus and reduced pulmonary diffusion, among others.

As for brain-related issues in this population, there is evidence of abnormal EEGs, neuroimaging findings of lesions of the subcortical cerebral white matter, large and widely scattered perivascular spaces, and reduced neuropsychological functioning, among others. However, a direct cause and effect relationship between certain of these findings and SCUBA still is a matter of debate.

Narrowing it down to vascular disease, abnormally prominent perivascular spaces (spaces that surround certain blood vessels within the brain) have been reported in commercial/professional divers. These are also seen in other conditions, including multiple sclerosis.

Interestingly, the cardinal feature of MS is demyelination (loss of the protective sheath that covers nerves). BTW, I am unaware of any research showing an association between demylinating processes and SCUBA.

Typically MS presents with one or more of the following: Tingling, numbness, loss of balance, weakness in one or more limbs, blurred or double vision, slurred speech, impaired coordination and memory, thinking or other cognitive difficulties. None of these were mentioned in the original post (or any other medical history).

Obviously, much important information is missing and likely a great deal of medical evaluation lies ahead. At the present time long term commercial diving appears low on the index of suspicion as a cause of significant vascular disease and demyelination within the brain.

Please keep the board updated on your situation. It's how we learn.

Regards,

DocVikingo

This is educational only and does not constitute or imply a doctor-patient relationship. It is not medical advice to you or any other individual, and should not be construed as such.

 

[Papa_Bear]

Hi Papa_Bear,

The most common demyelination disorder is multiple sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune rather than a metabolic disease.

Regards,

DocVikingo

I am familiar with the process I contracted a cause of Parsonage-Turner Syndrome from a Flue shot in 2002! Not good, the most pain I have ever had in my life! (Right arm)

I was aware of the MS, but did not want to make that assumption! Although I read that metabolic disease is suspected? Thus my quot! Thanks!

 

[DocVikingo]

I am familiar with the process I contracted a cause of Parsonage-Turner Syndrome from a Flue shot in 2002!!(sic)

Hi Papa_Bear,

Man, that was some rotten luck. This condition is quite uncommon and can be most painful.

Parsonage-Turner syndrome (PTS) is a neuritis the cause of which is unknown. The nerves that carry signals from the cervical spine to the shoulder, arm and hands become inflamed, and shoulder and upper arm pain and weakness may result.

It may be associated with diabetes, lupus, immunizations or viral illnesses, among other possibilities, some of them very rare.

I was aware of the MS, but did not want to make that assumption! Although I read that metabolic disease is suspected? Thus my quot! Thanks!(sic)

If you mean you read that metabolic disease is suspected as a cause of MS, I don't believe this information is correct. MS and its variants are autoimmune inflammatory, not a metabolic, diseases.

Now, there are other demyelinative disease that affect brain that are caused by metabolic disorders, such adrenoleukodystrophy and adrenomyeloneuropathy, but they do not appear to involve vascular disease within the brain.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[commdiver_12]

hi again.lol
sorry i didnt put much info in the first post....i presented to my doctor with memory loss and confusion , dizziness , visual distortions and audible halucinations...he then sent me to the neuro , which i have yet to talk to about the mri......my family doc told me what the mri said , but said the neuro would go over with me......at the same time i was being treated for a tumor on my adrenal gland( benign) so i thought maybe meds and hormones.... the cognative problems came on slow , over a ten month or so period , at first i was forgetting little stuff....dates stuff like that , but recently i have forgotten left from right , and how to hit a brake pedal , once....needless to say im not driving or diving at the moment, also there is limb weakness bi-laterally in lower extremities....lol sorry if my post is hard to de-cipher as my thoughts get jumbled.........im not sure of the name yet but i will post when i find out . the way my doc explained to me is the bloodvessels feeding the myelin sheaths on the nerve is where the problem is no blood flow so the myelin is dying.....anyway i will post info as i get it ....and thx again for the answers.....jim g