oth er indlve medical happenings : 



The hazards of decompression are, quite naturally, the primary concern in any 

 medical program attendant upon saturation diving. But there are other physical 

 difficulties, as well, peculiar to living and working in the water under 

 hyperbaric pressureo These were taken into account in planning the medical 

 surveillance and compiling the drug formulary used during the program, and it 

 is a matter of much gratification to the medical staff that no significant 

 medical problems arose during the course of any of the 11 missions, nor were 

 there any injuries. 



As was predictable, skin lesions and infections, external otitis, and 

 difficulty in equilibrating pressure within the ears to water pressure 

 ("clearing the ears," as it is commonly referred to) were the disorders most 

 frequently encountered during the entire project. However, of the 915 man 

 days represented by the 11 missions, only 13 days in the water were lost 

 outright because of medical reasons, and the record was almost as impressive 

 among those subjects who, for reasons of health, curtailed thier excursion 

 activities. 



Diving time lost 



Bilateral ear pain (ear "squeeze") - 3 days 



External otitis - 2 days 



Sinusitis - 2 days 



Abrasions (from diving) and edema (sea urchins) - 2 days 



Abdominal cramping and diarrhea - 1 day 



Flu-like illness - 1 day 



Diving time curtailed 



One subject limited his excursions from the habitat during the 

 entire mission because of subjective feelings of fatigue. 



One subject limited scuba diving for 5 days because of a sub- 

 jective sensation of "chest congestion." 



One subject limited ascent excursions after the second day of 

 his mission because of ear "squeeze." 



Several engineers were disinclined to spend much time in the 

 water, and indeed none of their duties required that they do 

 so. One engineer, who had suffered an anxiety attack prior to 

 the mission, spent possibly the least time in the water of the 

 entire cadre of aquanauts. 



IX-11 



