SOUTH AUSTRALIA (6 Apr 2004) -- ALL recreational divers should undergo annual specialist medical examinations and be warned about the potentially deadly nature of the activity, a state coroner said today. South Australian Coroner Wayne Chivell made the recommendations after inquests into the deaths of five people who drowned in separate diving incidents in the state in 2001 and 2002. Mr Chivell said there "a startling number of similarities" between the five cases. He said all the deceased had "medical conditions relevant to the cause of death which could have been detected in a properly conducted medical examination". They included an enlarged heart in three cases, lung disease in three cases and oesophageal reflux in one case. Four of the divers were also obese, Mr Chivell said. "All persons engaged in recreational underwater diving should undergo an examination by a registered general medical practitioner trained in hyperbaric medicine on a regular basis, preferably annually, but not less frequently than every two years," Mr Chivell said. | | In SA, a medical examination is required before a person can begin diving, but the medical practitioner does not need to have knowledge of the particular physiology and risks associated with diving. Also, once a person is declared fit to dive they can continue for the rest of their lives without another medical examination. Mr Chivell said medical practitioners should decline to conduct examinations for divers unless they had the appropriate specialised knowledge. They should also warn those they examine that "diving is a potentially lethal activity if undertaken by a person with certain medical conditions", he said. If there was any doubt about the person's fitness to dive, they should not be cleared to do so, he said. Mr Chivell also said two of the deceased divers had been inexperienced, while the other three were experienced but had had no recent training. SOURCE - Townsville Bulletin |
