CAN I DIVE WITH MY INERT GAS WASHOUT?
Q: My students asked what happens to the nitrogen bubbles in untreated decompression sickness (DCS). My guess was that they eventually get reabsorbed or offgassed via the lungs. What is the best answer?
A: Divers accumulate nitrogen (and/or other inert gases in their breathing mix) while diving. The deeper and longer the dive, the more gas accumulates. In cases of DCS, the inert gas load exceeds the tissues’ capacity, so bubbles form.
Gas enters the body through the lungs, moves into the circulatory system and then into other tissues. Offgassing occurs by the same mechanism in reverse: Inert gas moves from the body’s tissues
