What is scuba diving pressure injuries?

Scuba diving can expose you to high waves and dangerous sea life. But the more likely dangers are those you can't see. You can be injured if your body isn't able to adjust to the increasing and decreasing pressure of the water as you breathe compressed air. Pressure changes can cause injuries when you drop down into the water (descend) and come back up (ascend).

Scuba injuries may be mild. But in some cases, they can cause serious problems or even death.

Symptoms of scuba diving injuries can appear throughout your body. Some are mild, while others are more serious and need treatment right away.

Mild symptoms can include:

• Pain in your ears, sinuses, or teeth.
• Itching.
• Joint pain.
• Extreme fatigue.

Severe symptoms can include:

• Numbness and tingling in your arms and legs.
• Dizziness.
• Trouble breathing.
• Staggering or other trouble walking.
• Trouble seeing.
• Confusion.
• Chest pain.
• Passing out (losing consciousness).

Symptoms can show up right after you come to the surface. Or they may not appear for several hours, especially if you fly in an airplane too soon after diving.

Get emergency help if you have any symptoms of scuba injuries, even if they seem minor. It's easy to ignore joint pain and explain it away. But it could be a sign of illness. Sometimes the symptoms go away, but they can come back and get worse.

Treatment may depend on the type of injury.

The main treatment for decompression sickness is time in a hyperbaric chamber. In the chamber, you're exposed to increasing air pressure, like the high pressure underwater. The pressure is slowly reduced, as though you're coming up from underwater. Treatment in a chamber usually works best if it's done as soon as possible.

Most divers who have decompression sickness also get pure oxygen right away after they have symptoms.

If you have a barotrauma injury, treatment depends on what part of your body has been injured. For example, if you have a broken eardrum, you may be given antibiotics while your eardrum heals if you have signs of an ear infection. You also might get nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or corticosteroids to help reduce swelling.

If you have nitrogen narcosis, it often gets better on its own when you reach the surface.