CARTAGENA, Spain — A scuba diver suffering from potentially fatal decompression sickness is in hospital in Cartagena. Authorities have not yet identified the injured scuba diver, but told CDNN a 50-year-old male diver encountered problems while scuba diving off the coast of La Azohía. The scuba diving accident victim was brought back to shore where he was transferred to a waiting ambulance that rushed him to Virgen de la Caridad Hospital. Hospital officials have not yet released information about the injured diver's condition. 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 care. Specific symptoms include: Mild to severe joint pains involving the arms or legs. Intensity varies from mild to severe.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. | 
