Abstract
Cerebral decompression sickness is relatively rare in recreational diving. We report a case of cerebral decompression sickness that occurred on a remote island in Okinawa Prefecture and was successfully treated with recompression therapy following long distance air transport. The patient was a woman in her 30s who developed motor paralysis in her left upper limb, difficulty standing, and dysarthria after repeated deep dives off Minami Daito, Okinawa prefecture. At a local clinic, she was diagnosed with cerebral decompression sickness and determined that emergency recompression treatment was necessary. After long distance transportation via Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force large helicopter, the patient was brought to our hospital. She experienced a decrease in hypoesthesia and dysesthesia in his left upper limb during the recompression therapy. Her symptoms disappeared as a result of multiple recompression treatments. Although recompression therapy is the only definitive treatment for decompression sickness, few facilities can provide it 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In addition, there are restrictions on the flight altitude when airlifting decompression sickness patients from remote islands. For this reason, transportation can be difficult due to weather and other conditions. Therefore, thorough prevention of the disease is desirable.
