Patent foramen ovale and decompression sickness
|
Patent Foramen Ovale Microchapters |
|
Diagnosis |
|---|
|
Treatment |
|
Case Studies |
|
Patent foramen ovale and decompression sickness On the Web |
|
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Patent foramen ovale and decompression sickness |
|
Risk calculators and risk factors for Patent foramen ovale and decompression sickness |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editors-In-Chief: Priyamvada Singh, M.B.B.S. [2]; Assistant Editor-In-Chief: Kristin Feeney, B.S. [3]
Overview
Divers may face a risk of decompression illness if they do not have a patent foramen ovale closed.
Decompression sickness in patent foramen ovale
Decompression illness can occur in divers when they ascent from deeper waters to the surface. The change in pressure (high to low) causes formation of gas bubbles from components present in the different parts of the body like joints, spine and skin pores. These gas bubbles can enter the venous system and finally to the systemic circulation via the inter-atrial communications and can cause complications. Thus, scuba diving can lead to decompression illness and other complications in patients of patent foramen ovale
Trial supportive data
In a study done on 230 scuba divers, the incidence of patent foramen ovale was found to be 23%. The incidence of significant decompression event was found to be approximately 5 to 13-fold increased in divers with patent foramen ovale compared to those without a lesion. Additionally, the risk of a decompression event was positively associated with defect size. It was also shown that the number of ischemic brain lesions were twice as common with presence of patent foramen ovale than without it. Thus, device closure should be considered in divers with unexplained decompression.