What are the bends experienced by sea divers?

Question

What are the bends experienced by sea divers?

Answer 1

The medical term is "Decompression sickness", "the bends" are an old term.  Although it's associated with diving, that's not the only way it can develop.  Anyway, it is the result of gas bubbles forming in the blood stream when the divers return to the surface.  Think of your basic can of Coke.  It is filled and sealed under pressure, which keeps all the carbon dioxide bubbles trapped in the liquid soda.  When you pop the top, the pressure is reduced and the bubbles can more easily form and surface.  Underwater, a diver is also under pressure- water pressure forces the blood to accept more gas that it usually would.  If the diver returns to the surface slowly, those bubbles will form more slowly and be easily disappated.  If he rises too quickly though, the bubbles form in the blood stream quickly and large in size.  They then get caught in spots, usually the joints- although they can form embolisms in the lungs and heart.  The bubble caught in a joint will cause extreme pain, causing the diver to double up in pain- hence the name "the bends".  There are other symptoms, of course- but the pain in the joints is the most common one.  It is treated by putting the person in a decompression chamber, returning them to a pressure similar to that of the dive- using air of course, not water.  Then the pressure is gradually reduced and they are allowed to decompress more slowly, and safely.  This same thing can happen in an aircraft, if it loses cabin pressure while at high altitude.  The condition can also be brought on if a diver sucessfully surfaces, but flies in an aircraft within a day or so of diving.  Regardless, the treatment still still requires them to be put in a decompression chamber to decompress more slowly.  Another name for a decompression chamber is a diving bell- though that too is an old term.  If you like to read more about it, do your search on decompression sickness and treatment.

Answer 2

From What I Can Remember, Its The Nitrogen In The Blood Forming Bubbles. Because Nitrogen Is A Base Substance, The Body Cannot Break It Down Easily To Be Removed From The Body. Thus Once It Reaches Your Heart, It Goes Crazy. The Bends Are Extremely Painfull and Require A Long Time To Recover From Them. Sometimes, Blindness, Deafness, Paralysis and Others Have Been Known To Occur.

Answer 3

The bends happens when too much Co2 builds up in your blood stream and it causes havoc on your heart and blood pressure. The build up happens when a diver surfaces too quickly not giving the body enough time to kinda de pressurize on the way up giving the extra co2 that comes from the blood being pressured with all the weight of the deep water on the body.Its hard to really explain but I hoped this gives you a better insight. hen you get the bends you have to be laced in a chamber to de pressurize the body or you can die.

Answer 4

In a very simple way to answer this question,

IT MEANS TRAPING OF AIR IN THE MUSCLES THERE BY CREATING CRAMPS.