Decompression sickness, also called the Bends, occurs when your body experiences a rapid decrease in the pressure of water or air. It most commonly occurs in scuba or deep sea diving. As you lower into the ocean while diving with compressed air, you experience higher water pressure, which causes you to take in more oxygen and nitrogen. Your body can use the oxygen, but the nitrogen is sent into your blood stream, where it stays until the end of your diving trip.
The bends are very serious, and have a large amount of symptoms and dangerous problems that they can cause, including paralyzation and reduced brain functions, as well as disorientation. And while the bends may seem like they are very hard to get, there have been many cases in depths of 20 feet. Although the bends are very dangerous, there is a simple fix for decompression sickness patients: Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy refers to the treatment of being sealed inside of a large chamber which produces large amounts of oxygen, about two to three times the amount of air pressure as normal, which target the areas of the body that have been injured, or tissues that have been damaged. Due to the high amounts of air pressure, the lungs can consume more oxygen than they would normally be able to, which allows your body to replenish the oxygen in your blood stream, to remove bubbles, effectively removing the threat of the nitrogen in your blood stream. In addition, the Hyperbaric chamber can also be used to treat a large amount of other medical complications, including, Carbon Minoxcide poisoning, crushed limbs with blocked bloodflow, and infections of tissues and bones. The Hyperbaric chamber is a really lifesaving invention, and continues to impress with all of the injuries and ailments it can help cure.
RELATED STORIES:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy/about/pac-20394380
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy
https://www.medstarhealth.org/services/hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy
https://www.gwhospital.com/services/hyperbaric-medicine
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/17811-hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy
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