THE PREVALENCE OF CARDIAC DISEASE IN RECREATIONAL SCUBA DIVERS E. Lalor, R. Cresp, C.
Grove, L. Valinsky1 & PE. Langton.* Departments of Medicine
& Public Health1, University of Western Australia, Perth. Aims. SCUBA diving is a physically demanding activity
with a recognised risk of death. In
Australian series, 23 of 176 (13.1%) diving deaths were attributed directly to
cardiac causes, mostly coronary artery disease (CAD) (9.1%). Current
Australasian standards (AS4005.1) recommend medical assessment prior to SCUBA
training; active ischaemia or past myocardial infarction is considered
contra-indications to diving. There are, however, no guidelines on the periodic
reassessment of previously certified divers as they age. We aimed to determine the prevalence of
ischaemic heart disease, hypertension and diabetes in a cohort of recently
trained Western Australian recreational SCUBA divers. We also sought to characterise the general health of diving
trainees. Methods.
Questionnaires were mailed to 982 divers who had either recently
completed a PADI diving course, or who were members of the UWA dive club. The
overall response rate was 55%. Results . The mean age of study respondents was 27
(range 12-66), and ~15% were >50years old; 28% were female. There was a low prevalence of cardiac
disease (£1%), hypertension (4%) and diabetes (£1%). Current smokers constituted 11.6% of respondents and a further
16.9% were ex-smokers. Most subjects (98%) had undergone formal medical
assessment prior to training, and 4% also had had specialist assessment.
Regular aerobic exercise was undertaken by 88%, but only 28% swam regularly.
Nineteen percent were overweight and 5% were obese. Conclusions. Many subjects do not maintain optimal fitness for diving. The low
prevalence of symptomatic CAD amongst recently trained divers confirms the
effectiveness of current screening protocols. Entry based screening, however,
has limited efficacy in identifying individuals `at risk' of developing
CAD. These findings support the need
for periodic re-evaluation as divers health. 1. D. Walker. Report on Diving Deaths, 1972-1993. DAN - JL
Publications. Ashburton, Vic.
