It is common for visitors to include Scuba diving and a helicopter tour in their itinerary in touristy places.
Did you know that these two activities, if done within 24 hours, could lead to severe and potentially fatal health complications?
Did you know that even taking a flight back home within 24 hours of diving isn’t advised?
Read on to find out why.
What’s ahead
The right interval between a dive and flying
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What is Decompression Sickness?
Decompression sickness is also known as DCS or ‘the bends.’
It happens when the Nitrogen gas in the lungs moves into the bloodstream during a diving session (because of high pressure in the water).
If the diver surfaces slowly, Nitrogen gets time to slowly get back to the lungs, from where it can be breathed out.
This is why divers rise slowly and make intermittent stops (decompression stops) on the way up.
However, if you come out of the water fast, the Nitrogen doesn’t get time to get back to the lungs and instead becomes painful bubbles in the bloodstream.
Depending on many factors – age, body mass, obesity, etc., your body takes a certain amount of time to flush out all of the accumulated excess Nitrogen.
Sometimes, the body takes longer than necessary to return to the state before the diving session, and you start feeling uneasy.
Doctors call this Decompression sickness.
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Symptoms of Decompression Sickness (DCS)
When someone has a case of ‘the bends,’ they exhibit some or all of these symptoms.
The degree of impact may vary.
- Localized aches, tingling, or itching
- Swelling in certain parts of the skin
- Unusual depressions in surface tissues
- Nausea and vomiting
- Seizures, dizziness, vertigo
- Loss of balance, hearing, or ear-related problems
- Burning chest pain (under the Sternum)
- Burning feeling around lower back and chest
- Memory loss
- Confusion or abnormal behavior
- Headache
- Double vision, tunnel vision, blurred vision
- Muscle spasms and fatigue
If you experience these symptoms after your dive, you must immediately consult a doctor to ensure you get to a Hyperbaric (recompression) chamber.
Please don’t take this lightly. Here is news of a 38-year-old British tourist struck down by ‘the bends’ on a scuba diving trip in the Maldives.
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Not all divers experience DCS
The probability of divers experiencing DCS is pretty low, and that is why so many of us have an intense Scuba Diving session and carry on with the rest of our holiday.
If you’re young and relatively healthy and have an excellent divemaster supervising you, you will do just fine.
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The body takes a while to stabilize
Even if you feel fine after your diving session and show no signs of Decompression Sickness (DCS), your body is still working to eliminate the excess Nitrogen absorbed during the dive.
This semi-compressed, expanding nitrogen remains in your circulatory system, needing time to return to its gaseous state safely.
The process can’t be rushed, so patience is key while your body naturally adjusts.
When you take a helicopter tour
Boarding a helicopter too soon after diving can be risky, especially if your body still has Nitrogen in the bloodstream.
As the helicopter ascends, the surrounding pressure drops, increasing the chance of Decompression Sickness (DCS).
Unlike planes, which are usually pressurized, helicopters are often unpressurized, making you more vulnerable to these effects.
The longer your pre-flight surface time, the more Nitrogen your body can safely expel, reducing the risk.
However, if you fly too soon, you may develop delayed DCS, leading to serious health issues.
The right interval between a dive and flying
It is better to ensure a 24-hour gap between all kinds of diving experiences and getting airborne – in a helicopter or airplane.
There is no consensus on the number of hours one has to wait after deep-water diving before boarding an airplane or helicopter.
And that’s because underwater diving can vary in duration, depths, numbers, etc., and different people’s bodies stabilize at different speeds.
The Divers Alert Network (DAN) recommends a 12-hour minimum surface interval before flying.
The Professional Association of Diving Instructors suggests a 12-hour break after a single dive or an 18-hour break after multiple dives before taking off in a chopper or an airplane.
It is always safer to have a 24-hour gap between your scuba diving experience and a helicopter tour.
