PLYMOUTH, UK — A woman suffering from potentially fatal decompression sickness (the bends) was airlifted to hospital after another scuba diving accident in the UK. Authorities have not yet released the woman's name or condition but told CDNN she was scuba diving off the Fintan dive boat. At about 12:15 pm, the crew of the Fintan called for help when the woman resurfaced from a depth of 18 meters with symptom of decompression sickness. Brixham Coastguard scrambled a helicopter from RNAS Culdrose and launched a lifeboat from Plymouth. The injured scuba diver was airlifted to the Diving Diseases Research Centre (DDRC) for emergency hyperbaric medical treatment. Decompression sickness (the bends) Well over half of scuba divers afflicted with decompression illness report symptoms within 1 hour of surfacing from the dive, some 95% of victims show symptoms within six hours and almost all show symptoms within 24-48 hours. Nitrogen bubbles released while resurfacing cause damage by mechanically obstructing blood flow and can also cause a local chemical disruption of the vascular beds. Any scuba diving accident victim with signs or symptoms of decompression illness, which can cause death or permanent paralysis, should IMMEDIATELY SEEK EMERGENCY MEDICAL TREATMENT. Specific symptoms include: Mild to severe joint pains involving the arms or legs.Itching of the skin, which can progress to other symptoms of decompression illness.Rashes that can be accompanied by itching.Swollen and painful lymph nodes.Pain in the head, neck, or torso, which is often indicative of a severe DSC hit.Nervous system complaints, such as weakness on one side of the body, numbness, pains shooting down an arm or leg, inability to urinate or defecate, or other strokelike symptoms. "Chokes" including burning chest pain, cough, and shortness of breath."Staggers" (indicating an inner ear problem) including a spinning sensation, deafness, ringing in the ears, or vomiting. | 
