My friend just got her OW and she's been diagnosed with DCS

[tholden1]

I took my friend with me to Cancun to get her OW. We did six dives over the coarse of three days. Two were shallow at 30 feet, and the rest were between 50 and 80.

We waited 24 hours after our last dive before we flew. She was in a lot of pain the day we flew but all I knew of was the headache she had so I thought it was nothing.

Then, when she got back, she got skin blotches, nausea, was tired, her joints hurt, and she had the general feeling that she was out of it. The skin blotches went away but the general feeling of being out of it, and the pain got worse.

Well, yesterday, seven days after we last dove, she went to the hospital and they told her she has DCS. However, they said it is too late to go into a hyperbaric chamber and that too much time had passed. I thought that the only way to cure DCS is to put someone under pressure?

So the question is, should she be in a hyperbaric chamber or is it possible for too much time to pass for that to be of any help?

I was also curious if waiting 24 hours after diving okay to fly, or should it really had been 48 hours?

 

[WB2GLP]

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[Teamcasa]

Again, call DAN 1-919-684-9111

They will talk to you/her even if you don't have their insurance.

Call - NOW!

 

[shurite7]

The best advice has already been stated above. DAN can assess her dilemma better than a forum which can only offer you opinions.

Good luck.

 

[tholden1]

I just gave her the info. She's calling DAN now. Thanks guys. I had been urging her to contact them, but now I asked her to do it as a favor to me.

 

[TSandM]

I'm fairly sure that there is little benefit to initiating treatment seven days after the onset of symptoms, but it certainly reasonable to discuss this with the DAN folks.

The key to this whole story is that she was symptomatic BEFORE she got on the plane. How long you waited to get on the plane is irrelevant; at that point, she was already bent. Going to altitude simply exacerbated the condition.

I think one of the most difficult things for new divers is to assess which body aches and pains are due to unaccustomed activity -- stabilizing yourself on a boat, carrying heavy gear, swimming for long periods -- and what might be related to DCS. In addition, there is often a component of, "I can't admit I might be bent, because it means I made a mistake." But for treatment to be effective, it has to be started EARLY.

I hope you friend recovers completely. Do you have any insights from the profiles or ascents as to how this happened?

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Your buddy's symptoms seem to be consistent with a Type I DCS hit.

If she's still symptomatic, then I wouldn't be surprised if DAN recommends hyperbaric chamber treatment.

If she's no longer symptomatic, then it would probably be a judgment call. I believe that the Rosen text states that hyperbaric treatment of DCS patients can be beneficial with as much as a 10-14 day delay following the onset of symptoms. "Mild" DCS hits often resolve on their own. There probably wouldn't be any harm in doing a Table VI, but the benefit (weighed against the cost and inconvenience of treatment) might be questionable.

This assumes that, during her hospital visit, other medical causes (besides DCS) were ruled out appropriately.

The key to this whole story is that she was symptomatic BEFORE she got on the plane. How long you waited to get on the plane is irrelevant; at that point, she was already bent. Going to altitude simply exacerbated the condition.

@TSandM: Symptomatic onset isn't clear as described by the OP. The way I interpreted the post, the afflicted diver could have experienced symptoms during the flight. It's a subtle point, but it might be informative in terms of determining the seriousness of the hit.

 

[DevonDiver]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Post moved into Diving Medicine. The OP's questions reflect the need for a qualified diving medicine response, rather than a deco theory debate.

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[TSandM]

Well, I interpreted "She was in a lot of pain the day we flew" as meaning she was in pain before boarding the plane, but that could obviously be wrong.

I'll be interested in the response from DAN.

 

[Teamcasa]

I just gave her the info. She's calling DAN now. Thanks guys. I had been urging her to contact them, but now I asked her to do it as a favor to me.

Good plan. Please, if it is OK with her, share what happens next.