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Kinetic and Dynamic Models of Diving Gases in Decompression Sickness Prevention

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Abstract

Decompression sickness is a complex phenomenon involving gas exchange, bubble dynamics and tissue response. Relatively simple deterministic compartmental models using empirically derived parameters have been the mainstay of the practice for preventing decompression sickness since the early 1900s. Decades of research have improved our understanding of decompression physiology, and the insights incorporated in decompression models have allowed people to dive deeper into the ocean. However, these efforts have not yet, and are unlikely in the near future, to result in a ‘universal’ deterministic model that can predict when decompression sickness will occur. Divers using current recreational dive computers need to be aware of their limitations. Probabilistic models based on the estimation of parameters using modern statistical methods from large databases of dives offer a new approach and can provide a means of standardisation of deterministic models. Future improvements in decompression practice will depend on continued improvement in understanding the kinetics and dynamics of gas exchange, bubble evolution and tissue response, and the incorporation of this knowledge in risk models whose parameters can be estimated from large databases of human and animal data.

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Acknowledgements

The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Defense, or the US Government.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Decompression Program, Diving and Environmental Physiology Department, Naval Medical Research Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

    Robert Ball

  2. Department of Pharmacology, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington DC, USA

    Sorell L. Schwartz

  3. International Center for Toxicology and Medicine, Rockville, Maryland, USA

    Sorell L. Schwartz

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  1. Robert Ball
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  2. Sorell L. Schwartz
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Correspondence to Robert Ball.

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Dr Ball was affiliated to the Naval Medical Research Unit between 1995 and 1997.

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Ball, R., Schwartz, S.L. Kinetic and Dynamic Models of Diving Gases in Decompression Sickness Prevention. Clin Pharmacokinet 41, 389–402 (2002). https://doi.org/10.2165/00003088-200241060-00001

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