Assessing the Short- and Long-Term Health Effects of Decompression Sickness Among U.S. Navy Divers

摘要

This study identified the short- and and long-term health effects among U.S. Navy divers who suffered decompression sickness (DCS) during more than a decade (n = 362) and compared their hospitalization rates with a matched sample of divers who had no recorded diving accidents (n = 1,086). Of the 332 divers included in the analyses, results identified 251 individuals (75.6%) whose records contained no diving-related medical events after the DCS incident; no deaths and only three physical disabilities were attributed to DCS or diving. DCS divers had significantly higher rates than controls for total hospitalizations, symptoms and headache, diseases of the arteries and veins, and diseases of the pancreas, intestines, and gallbladder. No specific disease or time interval was identified as attributable to the DCS incident. Subsequent research should include medical information from outpatients' records and divers' questionnaires to determine with greater confidence the health risks that divers face as they pursue this Navy occupation. Keywords include: Longitudinal study, U.S. Navy divers, Decompression sickness, Hospitalization rates, and Physical disabilities.