Scuba diving days over after punctured lung?

[DiverG]

I'm bumping an old thread with an update. I previously stated that the lung had been punctured, but that seems not to be the case. I stopped by the hospital today to get some of the medical reports from the accident. The assessment from my initial emergency room admittance states:

Blunt Chest Wall trauma, pulmonary contusion, rib fractures and right pneumothorax.

Some of the other reports state a 25% right pneumothorax. I think the important thing is it was a contusion and not a laceration. So I feel better that I will be able to dive even if it is infrequent right now. Still thinking it would be prudent to get an ok from a doctor. What do you think?

 

[boulderjohn]

I had a 25% pneumothorax after a bad bicycle accident. It healed quickly, and there is no reason not to dive.

A pneumothorax is problematic when it is spontaneous, because what caused it could make it happen again while you are diving, which is not good. You are not likely to have another motorcycle accident during a dive.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

TSandM provided a good explanation of the mechanisms of traumatic pneumothorax earlier in the thread. Clearance to dive from a physician trained in diving medicine would be prudent. It may be as simple as reviewing the records from your admission.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[gkwalt]

As stated, spontaneous pneumothorax usually comes from congenital blebs (weakness areas of the lung) or rarely from abnormality located womb tissue in woman. I'm not sure, but it may be a crap shoot to dive after any pneumothorax. I have had an inner ear diving related injury where some people had advised me not to dive. After much research, I continue to dive. I love diving and being underwater, so I chose to continue diving. Yes, your rib fractured damaged lung may have healed and there is sufficient scarring that would make future diving safe. I'm not sure that anyone can say with 100% certainly that you are good to go. I, myself, have decided that diving means so much to me that I am rolling the dice. With that said, for me it would mean perhaps more loss of my hearing. But for you it may mean another collapsed lung. A lung specialist who has knowledge of diving medicine may be able to provide a definite answer.