A 52-year-old Canadian fire fighter visited Belize early in March, and like many visitors to the jewel, he took advantage of the country’s great diving spots. Despite a perfect start on his diving trip, something went terribly wrong near the end. As a result he was admitted in grave condition at the Sub-Aquatics of Belize Ltd. in San Pedro for hyperbaric medical treatment.
According to the medical staff at the hyperbaric chamber, the patient complained of pain, nausea, vomiting, severe vertigo, skin rash, and difficulty in standing. The well trained personnel at the facility rapidly diagnosed him to be suffering from Decompression Illness.
After been diagnosed by dive physician Doctor Giovanni Solorzano, he was prescribed with a United States Navy Treatment Table 6 (USNTT), which is considered the standard of care for the treatment of decompression illness. It is also the standard protocol to follow on all cases. The treatment was very efficient and almost immediately the patient improved.
While the diver was recovering, Dr. Solorzano did a neurological examination throughout the entire treatment that gradually led to his total recovery. As the improvement in his condition was notable, his treatment was lowered to USNTT 5.
Eventually, after a few days in treatment, he was given prophylactic treatments, in order to prevent the illness from occurring again. This was followed by a treatment of USNTT 9, which takes care of residual symptoms after the decompression treatments.
Andy Albeño, the operations manager at the hyperbaric chamber, expressed his satisfaction on the diver’s successful recovery. “It is very rewarding to be able to assist and aid in the transition from being so ill to medically discharged days after he was admitted in a wheel chair to our chamber,” he said. We monitored him day by day and we were so happy to see him walking out on his own, perfectly healthy on his last day here with us.”
Albeño added that this is just another successful case with complete resolution that their well -experienced hyperbaric team on the island and in Belize has solved in a satisfactory manner. “This is another happy story from the many we’ve had since we started providing hyperbaric treatment in 1989,” he stated.
Furthermore, he took the opportunity to invite all interested persons, especially the dive masters and instructors to attend a free training session on the topic “Dive Accident Management Lecture.” The training will take place on Monday, April 11th, at 7PM sharp at the Lions Den.
The chamber is a member of the 12 Sub-Aquatic Safety Service (SSS) Network, which has similar facilities in every continent. Some of these places include Mexico, Africa, Ecuador, USA, Bahamas and even Thailand. This attests to the facility’s high standards and experience in hyperbaric medicine.
The Hyperbaric Chamber in San Pedro is located right across the San Pedro Airstrip opposite Maya Island Air. For any diving related illnesses and emergencies you can contact them at telephone number (501) 226-2852, 226-3195 or email them at [email protected].
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