Considerable research over the past 10 years has been directed toward elucidation of the complement system and it’s effect on the body in association with bubbles. Reviewed nicely in 1997 by Andrea Zaferes in the magazine 'Immersed’, the complicated but important field of how bubbles cause damage is slowly but clearly being brought to light...

HBO in the Treatment of Acute Blood Loss Anemia Mechanisms of Action The efficacy of hyperbaric therapy is based on an elevation of the partial pressure of oxygen (PO2), resulting in hyperoxygenation of perfused tissues. Barometric pressure changes during HBO therapy are often expressed in multiples of atmospheres absolute (ATA). A change of one ATA...

Divers often donate blood and need to know when to resume diving. This article is meant to provide information to help answer those questions. This information should apply to any type of diving since the effect depends on the hemoglobin in the red blood cell mass rather than the partial pressures of gases. How long...

Definition of Anemia Anemia can be defined as a reduction in the hemoglobin, hematocrit or red cell number. In physiologic terms an anemia is any disorder in which the patient suffers from tissue hypoxia due to decreased oxygen carrying capacity of the blood. It is therefore possible for a patient to be physiologically anemic and...

by Martin Kirk NASA researchers recently quantified a number of physiological changes, previously detected in astronauts in outer space, in divers in an underwater habitat off the coast of Florida. In the underwater habitat during the nearly 2 week saturation dive at a depth of 19 meters, researchers detected a decrease in hemoglobin and hematocrit...

What is Polycythemia? It is a condition in which the body produces too many red blood cells. There are few references to this condition in any of the major textbooks of Diving or Hyperbaric Medicine. Some symptoms of the condition that might effect diving or mimic diving accidents include headache, dizziness, itchiness, (especially following a...

What Are Anticoagulants? Anticoagulants are drugs or substances that cause the blood to clot more slowly when out of the blood vessel; examples would be coumadin (Warfarin, Dicoumarol) and heparin. These medications are given specifically for this effect in order to prevent intravascular clotting. Other medications have this effect on divers as a specific side...

What is Sickle Cell Anemia? This is an inherited condition of people of mostly African heritage in which there are abnormal configurations of the red blood cells that appear as sickles instead of doughnuts. They tend to clump in vessels causing tissue infarcts and anemia, and are triggered by hypoxic conditions causing what is called...