DAN® MEDICAL INFORMATION SPECIALISTS and researchers answer your dive medicine questions. “I have developed Bell’s palsy. Due to its internal effects, are there any reasons I should not dive? I understand the risks of its external effects — but could diving cause …”
WHEN DID YOU START DIVING? I got certified in 1992 on the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia. For the next five years I dived in Turkey, Thailand, and on the shipwrecks of Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands, Scotland — all over …
I TAKE A GIANT STRIDE off the back of the boat and splash into a cascade of tingling, magical bubbles. The sea’s embrace is chilly; I can feel the 74˚F water through my 5 mm wetsuit and thick 4 mm hood. My vision clears as the …
FEBRUARY 6, 2022 HAD ALL THE MAKINGS OF A PROMISING DAY out on the water in the Gulf of Mexico off Destin, Florida. Though I work at a dive shop, this was a recreational lionfish harvesting trip with friends …
THE DIVE INDUSTRY IS FULL OF DEBATES. Should you use a jacket-style, back-inflate, or backplate and wing buoyancy compensator? A canister light or a cordless light? A weight belt or integrated weights? Regular fins or split fins?
SARCOPENIA IS A NATURAL MUSCLE LOSS (atrophy) due to aging. Periods of inactivity due to injury, illness, or a busy life can accelerate this process. Individuals over the age of 65 are particularly …
FIRES IN COMPRESSED OXYGEN EQUIPMENT are rare, even though we hear about life-threatening accidents — a rebreather fire, an emergency oxygen regulator accident, or a gas blending system fire. Several key questions arise …
CLOSED-CIRCUIT REBREATHERS (CCRs) have significantly grown in popularity over the past few years. They are becoming more of a norm in the technical diving community, and recreational and …
OF ALL THE FISHES IN THE SEA THAT ANNA ADORES, blennies perch high atop her favorites list. Her fascination with the tribe of typically small, hole-inhabiting bottom-dwellers …
AS YOU MAKE PLANS TO DIVE THIS SUMMER, remember that an important benefit of DAN membership is access to DAN Medical Services.
