broken ribs

[Robert]

Hi all,
this week I managed to break a couple of ribs, and although painful no other damage was sustained.
Has anyone any thoughts or experience of broken ribs and diving. I realise thats me cleaning my kit for at least a few weeks but I am not really sure how long to leave it before getting back in to the briny.Your help would be appreciated.

[Nigel Hewitt]

this week I managed to break a couple of ribs, and although painful no other damage was sustained.
Has anyone any thoughts or experience of broken ribs and diving. I realise thats me cleaning my kit for at least a few weeks but I am not really sure how long to leave it before getting back in to the briny.Your help would be appreciated.<shrug> Cue lots of people saying six months.

If I can walk I can dive.
Just be careful getting into your suit.

Hang it man, back when I raced motorbikes broken ribs weren't a reason to miss race two...

But there again I am the guy that can't reach the valves on a 'valves at the top' twinset due to too much motorcycle racing so maybe I'm not the guy to listen too on this one. I gave a heart attack, well two, six weeks before I dived again so I'm not always that hasty.

[Tony Dwyer]

Hi all,
this week I managed to break a couple of ribs, and although painful no other damage was sustained.
Has anyone any thoughts or experience of broken ribs and diving. I realise thats me cleaning my kit for at least a few weeks but I am not really sure how long to leave it before getting back in to the briny.Your help would be appreciated.

I'm not a Doctor, but if, as you say no other injury occured then you should be fine once the fractures have healed. I'd check with a medical referee though.

However,

it rather depends on what you actually did, rib fractures often mean damage to local soft tissue, which can include the pleura and even the lungs. Such injuries are not always immediately apparent, they don't usually show up on X-Ray for example, and can take longer to heal than the bones.

I'd check with a diving medical referee. :)

[Robert]

Thanks for the replies.
I bust my ribs by simply leaning over a item of machinery an flicking some cables over the back. No trauma no impact just bad positioning and bad luck.
Been given the all clear with no internal damage.

[richard scarsbrook]

I broke a rib about 6 weeks ago, and dived without any problems last Sunday. I declined to dive about 2 weeks after the accident, because although I'd have been happy to look after myself, I'd have been taking beginners on their first dives and I wasn't confident I'd have been able to rescue one if they needed it (and I don't need much excuse to not dive in Capernwray in January;) ).

The doctor and physio who I saw at the time told me I could do whatever I felt up to: it wouldn't do any harm, and was really a matter of pain threshold. It's a lot better now and only maximal breathing, lying completely flat, and a few upper body exercises such as dips, are a bit painful. The (sports) physio reckoned it would take 12-16 weeks to heal completely.

Obviously, you should take advice from your own medics about your own condition.

Good luck.

[C Forrest]

I'd check with a medical referee

Even when you may feel better it is always worth giving one of the medical referees a call and discuss your fitness to dive with them. Bear in mind that when you return to diving you will now have to tick yes to the following on the self declaration medical form:

17. Are you currently receiving medical care or have you consulted the
doctor in the last year other than for trivial infection or minor injury?

Which should automatically require you to consult a doctor/referee before you get back in the water. If you phone them you don't always have to go and see them, and you could talk about time frames then.

Cx

[Dave Woodward]

I guess I am like Nigel (and made the 2nd race 10 mins later), diving following that required asking others nicely if they could carry my twinset, and got me out of lauching and retrieving the boat too!

Dave

[MSutcliffe]

Been given the all clear with no internal damage
Err.... You broke two ribs - that's surely an 'internal injury.'

If it were me, then I'd hold off for a while. It is possible to put some stresses on the thoracic cage diving - not least due to the heavy equipment and the way we carry it. Until adequate healing has occurred, then a re-fracture would be painful (could be bad underwater), puts you at risk of a pneumothorax (very bad underwater), to name but two problems.

Whilst hyperbaric oxygen therapy can aid wound, and I believe bone healing - this is when it is done in a controlled fashion in dry chambers, whith very slow decompressions. We know that in yougsters, who's bones are growing' then diving can cause problems. We also know that lots of diving over many years can cause dysbaric osteonecrosis (bone damage/death). A hyperbaric physician or orthopaedic surgeon may well be able to give you more information on this.

Finally - you have somehow managed to break two ribs despite no significant trauma. I hope you appreciate that this is not normal - most of us walk around every day leaning over desks/equipment, and don't break ribs - are you satisfied that you have been properly investigated for any of the many and varied bone diseases which might make you more susceptible to breaks??

Just a few thoughts, make of them what you will.

--
Martin.

[maz33]

Robert,

I broke a rib or ?2 in a skiing fall last year. I was due to go diving 5 weeks after the injury. I could get no one to replace me on the trip so I decided to go on the trip and give it a go.
I was able to dive and had no trouble in the water. The group helped me with my twin set, lifting it up on the boat ect.
Everyone is different I can only tell you what worked for me. I would also add that if I could have found a replacement for my spot on the trip then I would have given it up as I was not 100% recovered.
Broken bones are a minium of 6 weeks to heal.

Maz

[Joe Swatzell]

Hello,
For what it's worth, the people I have been talking to about this are all mentioning the build up of Nitrogen...even in small amounts...and what Nitrogen does to screw up the proper healing of a broken bone.

A 5 week old injury is not a 2 week old injury and motorcycle racing doesn't put Nitrogen in your blood, so while dealing with the pain may imply you're macho, it doesn't mean you're smart.

I started reseaching this because we go to Yap in 18 hrs and my wife broke her leg 2 weeks ago. She is a nurse and willing to try it. I am now wondering if my diving is hampering the repair of a year old torn rotator cuff from rugby.

DAN website is not much help on this.

Joe