OXY-HELIUM TREATMENT OF SEVERE SPINAL DECOMPRESSION-SICKNESS AFTER AIR DIVING

Spinal cord injury in DCS after air diving is relatively frequent and often has late sequelae. U.S. Navy oxygen tables are sometimes not sat isfactory. The advantage of using helium in these cases is based theor etically on its physical properties and has been demonstrated in anima l models. We have introduced the Comex-30 (CX-30) oxy-helium table as an integral part of our treatment protocol for severe spinal DCS. We s ummarize here our clinical experience with seven cases. A case was con sidered severe if clinical assessment suggested progressive neurologic injury to the spinal cord or roots. Except for one case, the initial treatment was CX-30 followed by HBO sessions as indicated. Of the seve n patients treated, five made a full recovery and the remaining two we re left with mild neurologic sequelae.