Nut Bubblefish
Contributor
I am completely lost! Here is the story that brings the question in the title:
30th October 2005, 2nd day of diving in Lembongan (south of bali), 5th dive (3 dives on day one, and on my way for 3 more on day 2). Lot of current, probably did not drink as much water as usual, whatever... Very mild pain in the right arm, hardly noticeable actually, after the 5th dive.
After the 6th dive (all dives within computer limits, and by a comfortable margin), things started to be more concerning. Pain in the right shoulder, itchy skin on the arm, some pain in the right hand palm. Nothing excruciating, no general symptom. I was already in the hotel, the guys from the dive center were gone already, I could not believe it could be DCS. I took 2 tablets of aspirin, fluids, kept thinking that it could be pulled muscle, and slept on it. The morning after there was no improvement, and I decided to call DAN.
They told me to go to an hospital in Bali and see a doctor there. After a very quick questionnaire, no physical examination, few lab tests and an X ray, I ended up in the hyperbaric chamber for 5 hours. Treatment therefore started 18 hours after the last dive.
After the treatment, I felt OK. I must say that I did not feel any sudden improvement in the chamber. I rather felt slowly better during the treatment, and when I left for my hotel room, I just had some mild soreness in the back of my arm.
The day after, the doctor let me go back to my hotel, with rest, fluids, ... I flew back home ( 2 flights, 2 hours each) without any problem 5 days later. I still had this mild soreness in the right arm and shoulder, plus some hypersensitivity (when rubbing) on a small area of the arm skin. Nothing worsened when flying.
Back in my home (Borneo island), I did not notice any major improvement after one week, and went to see a doctor in charge of the hyperbaric chamber there. Once again, few questions, very basic examination, and 2 hours in the chamber on the day after. I was under the impression that I was improving after the treatment, so we repeated the sessions twice, 2 hours each time. I did the last one 2 weeks ago.
Now, 5 weeks after the incident, and with 4 sessions of hyperbaric O2 for a total of approx. 10 hours, I have no abnormal feeling on the skin. I feel some on /off discomfort in the right shoulder, or in the armpit, it depends. Sometimes, I feel some numbness in the right little finger, although it does not last a long time. I had that before the incident also... I have no weakness in the arm, and I could start again some golf, with no subsequent change.
To cut a long story short, I feel that I am slowly recovering, but I do not feel 100% the same on the right side compared to the left arm....
Now, my questions are: is this a normal course of evolution? Should I repeat hyperbaric treatment again? If so, which table? If I wait a little, can I expect recover within 3 months (which was the time I was given before considering diving again).
I was given different timeframes before diving: 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months... Should I count from the incident? from a complete recovery?
If my condition remains as it is today, should I consider that I am not fit for diving anymore?
Any opinion will be welcomed. Similar experiences would help a lot as well. I don't know what to think... Thanks.
30th October 2005, 2nd day of diving in Lembongan (south of bali), 5th dive (3 dives on day one, and on my way for 3 more on day 2). Lot of current, probably did not drink as much water as usual, whatever... Very mild pain in the right arm, hardly noticeable actually, after the 5th dive.
After the 6th dive (all dives within computer limits, and by a comfortable margin), things started to be more concerning. Pain in the right shoulder, itchy skin on the arm, some pain in the right hand palm. Nothing excruciating, no general symptom. I was already in the hotel, the guys from the dive center were gone already, I could not believe it could be DCS. I took 2 tablets of aspirin, fluids, kept thinking that it could be pulled muscle, and slept on it. The morning after there was no improvement, and I decided to call DAN.
They told me to go to an hospital in Bali and see a doctor there. After a very quick questionnaire, no physical examination, few lab tests and an X ray, I ended up in the hyperbaric chamber for 5 hours. Treatment therefore started 18 hours after the last dive.
After the treatment, I felt OK. I must say that I did not feel any sudden improvement in the chamber. I rather felt slowly better during the treatment, and when I left for my hotel room, I just had some mild soreness in the back of my arm.
The day after, the doctor let me go back to my hotel, with rest, fluids, ... I flew back home ( 2 flights, 2 hours each) without any problem 5 days later. I still had this mild soreness in the right arm and shoulder, plus some hypersensitivity (when rubbing) on a small area of the arm skin. Nothing worsened when flying.
Back in my home (Borneo island), I did not notice any major improvement after one week, and went to see a doctor in charge of the hyperbaric chamber there. Once again, few questions, very basic examination, and 2 hours in the chamber on the day after. I was under the impression that I was improving after the treatment, so we repeated the sessions twice, 2 hours each time. I did the last one 2 weeks ago.
Now, 5 weeks after the incident, and with 4 sessions of hyperbaric O2 for a total of approx. 10 hours, I have no abnormal feeling on the skin. I feel some on /off discomfort in the right shoulder, or in the armpit, it depends. Sometimes, I feel some numbness in the right little finger, although it does not last a long time. I had that before the incident also... I have no weakness in the arm, and I could start again some golf, with no subsequent change.
To cut a long story short, I feel that I am slowly recovering, but I do not feel 100% the same on the right side compared to the left arm....
Now, my questions are: is this a normal course of evolution? Should I repeat hyperbaric treatment again? If so, which table? If I wait a little, can I expect recover within 3 months (which was the time I was given before considering diving again).
I was given different timeframes before diving: 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months... Should I count from the incident? from a complete recovery?
If my condition remains as it is today, should I consider that I am not fit for diving anymore?
Any opinion will be welcomed. Similar experiences would help a lot as well. I don't know what to think... Thanks.
