Abdomen Punch to open airway in Unconscious Diver

[Griffo]

I was just reading my DAN Asia Pacific Magazine. In it, they list two incidents where tech divers suffered seizures underwater, ostensibly due to CNS hits. Both divers were successfully rescued by their buddies.
In one of them, it describes how the divers buddy punched the unconscious diver in the stomach to open his airway, then brought him to the surface from 18m. The story goes on to describe how the buddy gave him rescue breaths on the surface until he was brought aboard a boat where he was found to be breathing. Although there was pink frothy sputum, the diver ended up recovering completely.

A google search of the whole "punch to the abdomen" only returns results back to a single SB thread that doesn't really say much about it. Is this a recognised technique to open the airway when ascending with an unconscious diver? Is it some old-school technique that is no longer taught?

Curious.

 

[Scuba_Noob]

Interesting strategy. From my layman's point of view, it sounds like maybe punching the diver in the stomach/diaphragm area may push the diaphragm up and compress the lungs to push air out and open the airway (similar to if someone is choking and you do the Heimlich maneuver). Please correct me if I'm completely off.

More research into this method is needed.

Then again, I might just use it as an excuse to punch buddies I don't like. "Oh, I thought you were unconscious, and I was just trying to save you!" :boxing:

 

[koozemani]

Ask Houdini.

Id be interested in a medical point of view on this.

 

[ajduplessis]

Sounds all feasible if no water inhalation happened. Once a laryngospasm occurs chances of recovery is zero.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Once a laryngospasm occurs chances of recovery is zero.

I'm not understanding this comment ... couple years back I suffered laryngospasm several hundred feet back inside a cave ... and managed to make it out OK. Depending on the circumstances, it's quite recoverable.

As for the initial question ... I used the technique once, about six years ago, on a student who was desperately trying to bolt to the surface while holding his breath. I was holding onto him and would not let him go up until I saw bubbles. On the other hand, I wouldn't exactly call it a "punch" ... it was more like a firm push on his abdomen with my fingertips ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[KD8NPB]

Not gonna lie : I thought the same thing, but was too afraid of looking like a fool to ask.

You can't exactly intubate underwater.

I expect to see the gutpunch in future Rescue Diver training.

 

[TSandM]

Gut punching would be most useful in the scenario Bob describes -- a conscious diver who is holding his breath.

An unconscious diver has likely relaxed his airway, and will allow gas to exit on ascent. If he is still actively seizing and has NOT relaxed the airway, a punch might be successful in exhausting enough gas to avoid pulmonary barotrauma, but might also CAUSE that barotrauma. In the presence of laryngospasm, positive airway pressure may or may not be successful in exhausting gas.

It would be my suspicion that the diver in the case cited survived because he did not have an occluded airway, and not because somebody punched him.

 

[Crewfish13]

When doing the emergency buoyant ascent in our OW class pool drills, our instructor actually told us that if he doesn't see bubbles on the way up, we were getting punched in the gut. Not sure if he actually meant it, but it made sense to me at the time.

 

[Griffo]

Gut punching would be most useful in the scenario Bob describes -- a conscious diver who is holding his breath.

An unconscious diver has likely relaxed his airway, and will allow gas to exit on ascent. If he is still actively seizing and has NOT relaxed the airway, a punch might be successful in exhausting enough gas to avoid pulmonary barotrauma, but might also CAUSE that barotrauma. In the presence of laryngospasm, positive airway pressure may or may not be successful in exhausting gas.

It would be my suspicion that the diver in the case cited survived because he did not have an occluded airway, and not because somebody punched him.

Thanks. I was intrigued, because normally when you hear of a diver brought up from those kinds of depths, the story ends with them suffering an AGE or other barotrauma.

 

[ferris213]

I was told a story by an instructor that he had a student in full panic who wanted to bolt to the surface. He said he punched them in the abdomen a number of times on the way up to ensure an open airway.

Not sure how much of it was exaggeration and how much was true, but for a panicked diver I guess it could work?