Caisson Disease

Caisson Disease is another name for decompression sickness.

Decompression sickness occurs when a person quickly rises from a deep-sea dive or from conditions of high pressure gas environment. In this case, rapid expansion of gases in tissues and blood occurs, which leads to tissue damage and the development of clinical symptoms.

The name “caisson disease” is due to the fact that in the past it was often encountered among workers who worked in caissons - sealed chambers with high air pressure that were used in the construction of foundations for bridges and tunnels.

The main symptoms of decompression disease are pain in the joints and muscles, skin manifestations, breathing problems, and damage to the nervous system. For prevention, a gradual decrease in pressure is used when leaving high pressure conditions. Treatment is aimed at relieving symptoms.

Caisson disease, or decompression disorder disease, is a type of coma that develops as a result of chronic tissue hypoxia after a short-term increase in intravenous gas pressure (decompression) when a person gets into a submarine or bathyscaphe with quickly released pressure. In this case, vasodilation occurs and gas exchange is inhibited with the release of gases from the blood or tissues.

This is a pathological condition caused by a short-term rapid decrease in external oxygen pressure. The reason why oxygen deficiency occurs in tissues is due to too rapid replacement of atmospheric gas in the gas exchange membrane system in the body. The source of gas can be, for example, cylinders, breathing mixture (balloon breathing equipment), breathing apparatus (in the absence of oxygen). This leads to a decrease in the partial pressure of oxygen in the blood and tissues, which leads to hypoxia and, as a consequence, an increase in lactate levels in the tissue and the accumulation of lactic acid and nitrogen products in the blood. Typically, the main cause of dehydration is an imbalance between the creation of positive hydrostatic pressure and increased CO2 tension. The resulting local spasms of blood vessels (capillaries) lead to anoxic tissue necrosis and the development of edema. In some cases, a general allergic reaction of the body to the active component - CO2 or N2O - may develop. From the internal organs, the development of pulmonary insufficiency and pulmonary edema is possible. Depending on the location of the disease, different tissues are affected.