DCS or not DCS

[Jonno]

I have a friend who is an experienced diver. Recently a few hours after a 20m dive, straightforward no deco profile he had a bit of a tingle in 1 hand and 1 foot accompanied by a warm feeling. He checked himself into the chamber and had a couple of treatments over a couple of days and went home. That evening the symptoms came back and he was taken back to the hospital. Since then he has had daily repeated recompression treatments probably at least 7, sometimes he is better sometimes not, treatments are scheduled daily till next Wednesday with the exception of the weekend.

I have known personally of about 10 cases most of which are fully resolved after no more than 2 recompressions and we are all a little confused by this, to the point that we are wondering if it is a trapped nerve or such. Case studies I have read after very serious incidents do not run to such treatment requirements.

Has anyone got any feedback to offer please. Thanks in advance

 

[Scraps]

From DAN's website:

The course of HBO therapy will vary according to the particulars of each case; both the presentation of DCS and its response to treatment can be idiosyncratic. A full resolution of DCS symptoms can often be achieved with one or sometimes multiple HBO treatments. In some cases, however, resolution will be incomplete, even after many treatments. The normal clinical approach is to continue the treatments until no further improvement is seen in the patient’s symptoms. Modest residual symptoms will then often resolve slowly, after the treatment series is ended. Full resolution of symptoms can sometimes take months to achieve and in some instances may never be realized.​

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

I have a friend who is an experienced diver. Recently a few hours after a 20m dive, straightforward no deco profile he had a bit of a tingle in 1 hand and 1 foot accompanied by a warm feeling. He checked himself into the chamber and had a couple of treatments over a couple of days and went home. That evening the symptoms came back and he was taken back to the hospital. Since then he has had daily repeated recompression treatments probably at least 7, sometimes he is better sometimes not, treatments are scheduled daily till next Wednesday with the exception of the weekend.

I have known personally of about 10 cases most of which are fully resolved after no more than 2 recompressions and we are all a little confused by this, to the point that we are wondering if it is a trapped nerve or such. Case studies I have read after very serious incidents do not run to such treatment requirements.

Has anyone got any feedback to offer please. Thanks in advance

Not much to add to what @Scraps pasted above if this was DCS. It's a bit of an unusual presentation though, and I would want to rule out other neurological causes as well, especially if the symptoms don't seem to be resolving with hyperbaric oxygen treatment.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[stingray1abyss]

Thanks Jonno for posting on my behalf.

An update of where I stand.
I have now been in the hyperbaric chamber a total of 15 times since July the 23rd symptoms seem to be more aggressive during the night when trying to sleep, sometimes very mild or quite strong. I would get a warm tingly sensation that would start in my left arm and and slowly progress to my torso and left leg.
The last 4 days I have been feeling more myself without much of the tingling in my left arm and leg, yesterday I felt absolutely fine but today I feel a bit weak in my left arm. I have been having a slight discomfort in the middle of my back. So I am questioning could it just be a nerve being irritated on and off causing me to have these DCS like symptoms?

Thanks for the help

 

[BoltSnap]

Did you have an MRI done for your spine and seen a spine surgery expert to ascertain if you have issues there unrelated to diving?

 

[Lostdiver71]

It could be DCS but really sounds like a possible spinal injury or pinched nerve, especially with the variation in symptoms at different times of the day. I would definitely get checked out by a doctor that specializes in spinal injuries as this sounds similar to the problems that I am dealing with and I have disk damage in my neck and back.

 

[ibj40]

Almost sounds like my bout with Sciatica.

Out of nowhere, having been a competitive distance runner (usually top 3 to 5 in my age group) from my mid 30’s to my late 50’s, I woke up one morning with a numb left leg.

After a visit to the emergency room and some painkillers and muscle relaxers, an MRI confirmed it.

Months of PT and I finally got strength back to about 85%. Subsequent back to about 95%. I don’t run anymore.

At 71, I still have residual numbness in the bottom of my left foot and outside of my left calf.

 

[Ghost95]

It's interesting that the symptoms seem "more aggressive" at night when you're trying to sleep, ie lying down. Have you tried lying down in the position that you try to go to sleep in and see if the symptoms are aggravated?

Might be something to try. If the symptoms are worse when lying down in a certain position I'd feel more than likely it's a pinched nerve type of thing. Maybe an injury caused by lifting tanks or something on the trip rather than the dive it's self.

Hope you figure it out.

 

[Julius SCHMIDT]

No seriously, fifteen times in the chamber after an "undeserved hit" I'd be looking to see if the operating insructions
are in the same language as the operators speak, and that the colourless liquid in their drink bottles isn't really ouzo

"Wake up Jeff"

 

[BoltSnap]

Not sure about Cypress where this incident took place but I know that many recompression chambers in the f'ed up world around me sell the concept of recompression therapy as if it were a "health spa" that will cure a person of many ailments. They even chase divers telling them to go to a chamber every few months to get rid of "residual/excess" nitrogen and rejuvenating their tissue. They won't tell you that you need to see another expert for your issue, they will trap you in and try to keep coming to use their services.