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Influence of lung volume, glossopharyngeal inhalation and P ET O2 and P ET CO2 on apnea performance in trained breath-hold divers

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Abstract

Breath-hold divers train and compete in maximal apnea performance. Glossopharyngeal inhalation (GI) is commonly used to increase lung volume above vital capacity (VC) prior to apnea. We investigated the hypothesis that this practice would increase apnea performance and relaxed airway pressure. Seven well-trained breath-hold divers performed maximal bouts of apnea at three different lung volumes (85% VC, VC and VC + GI) both at rest (dry static apnea) and during underwater swimming (dynamic apnea). Heart rate, apnea time and end tidal PCO2 and PO2 (P ET CO2 and P ET O2) were recorded. In addition, relaxed airway pressure was measured after GI. Maximal GI increased lung volume by 1.59±0.57 l above VC and increased relaxed airway pressure to from 3.5±0.5 to 8.7±1.7 kPa. Dry static apnea time was higher at VC + GI (346±46 s) than at VC (309±38 s, P<0.05) and 85% VC (297±48 s, P<0.01). Likewise, dynamic apnea time was higher at VC + GI (97±27 s) than at VC (78±14 s, P<0.05) and 85% VC (71±17 s, P<0.05). P ET O2 values reached 3.5±0.6 kPa at the end of dry static apnea bouts and this was not different from dynamic apnea when taking hydrostatic pressure at swimming depth into account (3.7±0.6 kPa, P=0.48). In conclusion, GI increases lung volume, relaxed airway pressure and apnea performance in well-trained breath-hold divers.

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Acknowledgments

We thank M.D. Henrik Staunstrup for acting as a clinically responsible supervisor for the project and for being present during all the experiments requiring clinical surveillance. We thank the divers of Aarhus free-diving club for their participation in the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sport Science, University of Aarhus, Katrinebjergvej 89C, 8200, Aarhus N, Denmark

    Kristian Overgaard, Søren Friis & Rasmus Bak Pedersen

  2. Department of Zoophysiology, University of Aarhus, C.F. Møllers Allé 131, Universitetsparken, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark

    Gunnar Lykkeboe

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  1. Kristian Overgaard
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  2. Søren Friis
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  3. Rasmus Bak Pedersen
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  4. Gunnar Lykkeboe
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Correspondence to Kristian Overgaard.

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Overgaard, K., Friis, S., Pedersen, R.B. et al. Influence of lung volume, glossopharyngeal inhalation and P ET O2 and P ET CO2 on apnea performance in trained breath-hold divers. Eur J Appl Physiol 97, 158–164 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-006-0156-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-006-0156-2

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