Guest guest Posted April 26, 2006 Report Share Posted April 26, 2006 Hello Everyone, My husband, Roger, had been feeling very unwell after a scuba dive on Sunday. There was a strong current and he had to battle that on a come-back line along with holding on to his dive camera and lights which weigh 3-4 kilos out of the water but underwater are virtually weightless: exception+ battling a current. We thought he may have strained his muscles decompressing after the 35 metre dive at 3 metres with the assailing current. He had symptoms not particularly similar to and of nitrogen narcosis (a bend) but we were still concerned for 48 hours. Bless him! He is very vociferous about his afflictions and ready to see a doctor, which he did and basically was told that, yes, muscle strain seemed the answer. He then was further perturbed and was able to see our GP who was off for Anzac day, who then sent him for a CT scan. And just 11 hours before he was due to fly out to Hong Kong for business he found that he did indeed have a couple of air embolisms in his left lung, which would have made him extremely ill altitude. What he has is a pneumothorax which basically means that air has entered the plural sac thus creating a collapse of the left lung of 15%. He has now been instructed to get futrher CT scans today and tomorrow to see if the air is being expelled and carried out by other body systems otherwise there is need for a surgical procedure to physically expel the air trapped. What the???? Any ideas please or similar experiences? I'm not sure what I can do on my end here. Love Linda Australia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 26, 2006 Report Share Posted April 26, 2006 On Behalf Of Linda Shawyer Wednesday, April 26, 2006 5:01 PM Pneumothrax Pneumothorax. Linda... Hey... I just finished my Medical transcription course and I've learned that depending on the size of the hole ( If His lung has a wee bit of a hole in it) it can spontaneously heal and the air will diffuse through the body tissues, and it may cause some pain for a while. If his lung has a big enough hole in it they can staple it shut. (I have a friend who had this happen to her and they told her that it can heal on it's own or they can staple and do a chest tube to drain the air out of the body.) She had the staple and no chest tube but said that she could feel the air moving out of the tissues... The main thing is not to worry too much, because you can cause yourself more harm than not when worrying... He should be fine. Hope this helps. Jennifer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 Hi Linda- A pneumothorax can certainly be serious, but where your husband's is only 15%, that may be not a big issue. What he wants to do is be sure to keep himself hydrated properly, rest when he gets tired and take it easy. Small pneumothoraxes often time resolve themselves, but they need to be watched to make sure they are healing properly. If it is getting bigger and he is getting more symptomatic, then he may need to be admitted to have it properly taken care of; otherwise, just have him take it easy and chances are it will heal on it's own. If he smokes, this is not a good thing either. If he is getting more symptomatic, be sure to seek medical help. Good luck! Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 Many thanks for your insight to this condition. Have given him some anit-spasmodics (suggested from a dear and knowing herbalist) in tea form and will wait to see what will come from further CT scans. I will try some stress relieving oils on him and myself in the meantime. Ach, just got my plaster off from having a broken wrist which was a broken arm and then a broken wrist again. Pfff the public health system. Joys!!!! Love Linda in Australia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 27, 2006 Report Share Posted April 27, 2006 ________________________________ On Behalf Of Linda Shawyer Wednesday, April 26, 2006 3:01 PM Pneumothrax Hello Everyone, My husband, Roger, had been feeling very unwell after a scuba dive on Sunday. There was a strong current and he had to battle that on a come-back line along with holding on to his dive camera and lights which weigh 3-4 kilos out of the water but underwater are virtually weightless: exception+ battling a current. We thought he may have strained his muscles decompressing after the 35 metre dive at 3 metres with the assailing current. He had symptoms not particularly similar to and of nitrogen narcosis (a bend) but we were still concerned for 48 hours. Bless him! He is very vociferous about his afflictions and ready to see a doctor, which he did and basically was told that, yes, muscle strain seemed the answer. He then was further perturbed and was able to see our GP who was off for Anzac day, who then sent him for a CT scan. And just 11 hours before he was due to fly out to Hong Kong for business he found that he did indeed have a couple of air embolisms in his left lung, which would have made him extremely ill altitude. What he has is a pneumothorax which basically means that air has entered the plural sac thus creating a collapse of the left lung of 15%. He has now been instructed to get futrher CT scans today and tomorrow to see if the air is being expelled and carried out by other body systems otherwise there is need for a surgical procedure to physically expel the air trapped. What the???? Any ideas please or similar experiences? I'm not sure what I can do on my end here. Love Linda Australia Hi Linda, I am one of those unfortunate souls who have had this condition, acute pneumothorax, however, caused by different circumstances. I was only 18 at the onset; I had an extreme case of bronchitis and literally coughed a hole in my lung. Lung collapsed approximately 35% that time. It happened again a year or so later with lesser collapse. I found out that this is somewhat common with athletes, and docs said then that I would most likely 'outgrow' the proclivity. My body did heal itself, however, some of my aveolar sacs (which burst because they were faulty and would not quickly deflate-causing the lung blowout because of the amount of air I was taking in by coughing so hard) are still quite weak and don't work properly. So whenever I cough profusely, it could be dangerous - akin to inflating a balloon until it pops. This was one of many more painful experiences in my life. The only medication I was given were sulfur drugs to reduce fluid, however, the rest was up to my body. The trapped air did eventually dissipate, but it was extremely painful for a month or more until it did. Haven't had it happen again, and I have had some doozy coughs since then. At the time, I rested, rested and rested some more. Be Well, Marcia Elston http://www.wingedseed.com " Give thanks for a little and you will find a lot. " Hausa Saying from Nigeria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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