EVIDENCE FOR INERT-GAS NARCOSIS MECHANISMS IN THE OCCURRENCE OF PSYCHOTIC-LIKE EPISODES AT PRESSURE ENVIRONMENT

PSYCHOTIC-LIKE episodes in divers exposed to high pressure have been a ttributed to either the high-pressure neurological syndrome, confineme nt in pressure chamber, the subject's personality, or the addition of nitrogen or hydrogen to the basic helium-oxygen breathing mixture used for deep diving. Alternatively, it is suggested that these disorders are in fact paroxysmal narcotic symptoms that result from the sum of t he individual narcotic potencies of each inert gas in the breathing mi xture. This hypothesis is tested against a variety of lipid solubility theories of narcosis. The results clearly support the hypothesis and provide new information about the cellular interactions between inert gases at raised pressure and pressure itself.