Scuba Diving Injuries

 

 

 

Over the last 30 years, scuba diving has significantly increased in popularity. In 1975, there were only around 200,000 divers in the U.S. Today, there’s an estimated nine million certified divers in the U.S. While obviously an interesting, fun, and exciting activity, scuba diving does come with a risk of injury.

Most of the serious diving injuries follow the diver being in poor physical health and/or not following the safety rules of diving. Improper equipment and equipment failure are also frequent causes of dive-related injuries. Potentially life threatening injuries like barotrauma to the lungs; ear, sinus, and tooth squeezes; and decompression sickness (the bends) are the most talked about injuries in scuba diving, but there are actually a number of other injuries that divers face.

What Are Some Scuba Diving Injuries?

Muscle Cramps

A spasm is the involuntary contraction of a skeletal muscle. When this spasm is sustained and forceful, it becomes a muscle cramp. The muscle will not relax on its own. The cramping can affect part of one muscle or a few fibers of a muscle, an entire muscle, or multiple muscles within a muscle group. In scuba diving, the most common sites for cramps are in the calf muscles, hamstrings, quadriceps, and arc of the foot. Muscle cramps may be caused by a number of factors, including muscle fatigue, muscle tightness, dehydration, nerve hyper-excitability, hard and soft tissue injuries, and so forth. However, finning is one of the main causes of muscle cramps in divers, as it requires the lower leg muscles to repeatedly flex and extend the ankle. The symptoms of a muscle cramp are a sudden sharp contraction or spasm that causes muscle pain and a palpable or visible lump in the affected muscle.

Contusions

A contusion is the medical term for the various types of bruises. They are caused by blunt force impacts, such as a diver slipping and falling as they return on a boat, colliding with underwater objects, or being knocked into another diver or object by a wave. The impact can damage tissue at the subcutaneous, muscle, or bone level…depending on the force of the impact. As the affected tissue is struck, the tiny capillaries in the area are torn and begin to seep blood into the nearby interstitial tissues. The area may swell, turn black-and-blue, and become sore and painful as the seeping blood accumulates.

Of course, these are just a few of the potential injuries a scuba diver may suffer. Lower back injuries can occur from lifting heavy dive gear and wearing weighted wetsuits. Muscle strains, especially in the lower leg, can occur from the repetitive kicking involved with scuba diving. Fractures, lacerations, and concussions can occur following a collision with a boat, reef, or marine life.

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Acute Sinew Liniment

Acute Stage Treatment: Rub on the injured area when swelling and/or inflammation are present.

Quickly relieves pain, reduces swelling and inflammation, and breaks up clotted blood and stagnant fluids in the injured area. Stimulates circulation of blood and fluids to help cells quickly repair damaged tissues, providing rapid pain relief and faster healing. Sinew Herbal Ice can be used in-between applications.
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Chronic Sinew Liniment

Chronic Stage Treatment: Rub on the injured area when swelling and inflammation are gone, but you still feel pain, stiffness, weakness or sensitivity in cold and damp weather.

Strongly stimulates circulation to damaged tissues and promotes the healing of overstretched tendons, ligaments and muscles, thereby quickly relieving pain, stiffness and weakness. Sinew Injury Poultice, Sinew Relaxing Soak, and the Sinew Warming Soak can be used in-between applications.
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Sinew Herbal Ice

Acute Stage Treatment: Apply on the injured area when swelling and/or inflammation are present.

This first-aid ice alternative poultice (balm) is used in place of ice to significantly speed up the recovery and healing process. Reduces redness, swelling, and inflammation while dispersing accumulated blood and fluids to help restore normal circulation to the injured area. It reduces the swelling and inflammation more effectively than ice, allowing you to more quickly regain normal range of motion. Acute Sinew Liniment can be used in-between applications.
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Sinew Injury Poultice

Chronic Stage Treatment: Apply on the injured area when swelling and inflammation are gone, but you still feel pain, stiffness, weakness or sensitivity in cold and damp weather.

This poultice (balm) is particularly useful if your injured area is more painful in cold and damp weather. It significantly stimulates circulation to damaged tissues and further promotes the healing of overstretched tendons, ligaments and muscles. Chronic Sinew Liniment, Sinew Relaxing Soak and the Sinew Warming Soak can be used in-between applications.
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Sinew Relaxing Soak

Chronic Stage Treatment: Used to soak the injured area when swelling and inflammation are gone, but you still feel pain, stiffness, weakness or sensitivity in cold and damp weather. If the injured area is too large or in an area that can’t be submerged in a pot of water, you can also saturate a towel in the liquid and apply it to the injured area.

This soak is particularly useful if you feel restricted mobility in your injured area. It is used to relax muscles, tendons and ligaments that are in spasm to reduce pain and stiffness and improve range of motion. Chronic Sinew Liniment, Sinew Injury Poultice and the Sinew Warming Soak can be used in-between applications.
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Sinew Sports Massage Oil

This specially formulated massage oil is recommended for use before and after exercise, sports and strenuous activity. It penetrates deep into muscle layers to warm and stimulate muscles, increase circulation and relieve tightness, hence improving your performance and helping to prevent injury.
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Sinew Warming Soak

Chronic Stage Treatment: Used to soak the injured area when swelling and inflammation are gone, but you still feel pain, stiffness, weakness or sensitivity in cold and damp weather. If the injured area is too large or in an area that can’t be submerged in a pot of water, you can also saturate a towel in the liquid and apply it to the injured area.

This soak is particularly useful if your injured area is more painful and sensitive to cold or hurts more in cold weather. It is used to bring warmth into the injured area to drive coldness out of damaged tissues and increase local circulation, thereby relieving pain and stiffness in cold weather. Chronic Sinew Liniment, Sinew Injury Poultice and the Sinew Relaxing Soak can be used in-between applications.
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Our price: $37.95
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