07-16-2004, 08:03 AM
07-16-2004, 08:13 AM
This link is to DAN and thier position on PFO:
THis link talks about how they performe the test:
THis link talks about how they performe the test:
DRE
07-16-2004, 08:57 AM
If anyone is interested in getting a firsthand account of PFO repair for diving, contact Faith at DUI - her husband was the first person in the US to get his PFO treated specifically for diving.
D
D
07-22-2004, 09:59 AM
I was tested for a PFO 2 or 3 years ago. I thought that if I were to start doing deeper dives, it might be a good idea to check it out. I went to my yearly physical and convinced my doctor I needed one for a scuba class, so my insurance paid for it all. I went to a heart clinic in Edina and did the test where they inject bubbles into the vein. It was pretty weird but not painful. I didn't have one.
Derrick
Derrick
08-19-2004, 03:05 PM
There are a number pf tests that could be done to test for a PFO. The one that is done most commonly is th external ultrasound. This test is not as accurate as the other two. TEE (you swallow a device that takes an ultrasound pictrure of your heart) and then there is another test where they inject a dye into your system (one of my dive buddies had this done because he could not swallow the TEE device). My wife had a PFO repaired 2 years ago. She had it done at the Mayo Clinic. She has logged over 300 dives and has been to 230' on trimix since then, without any incidents of DCI. She had 3 incidents of DCI before the discovery of the PFO. She was tested with the external Ultrasound twice and they did not detect the PFO. I don't trust that test anymore because of our experience.
Jim
Jim
08-20-2004, 07:47 AM
DAN just had an article in the newest Alert Diver Mag that has some great information about PFO's
08-20-2004, 09:25 AM
What is PFO? Patent Foramen Ovale . . . read on . . .
Clipped from DAN:
"What is patent foramen ovale? The foramen ovale is an opening, or communication, between the right atrium and left atrium in the heart. (Foramen is Latin for opening, or aperture; ovale is, appropriately, Latin for oval, indicating the shape of the aperture.) The normal passage of blood in the adult human is from the great veins of the body, through the right atrium into the right ventricle, and then via the pulmonary artery to the lungs. Blood then returns via the pulmonary veins into the left atrium. It is then pumped into the left ventricle and via the arteries to the various tissues of the body.
In the developing fetus, however, the lungs are not functional. Blood, therefore, bypasses the lungs predominantly through the foramen ovale, directly from the right atrium to the left atrium. After birth, the foramen ovale closes, allowing blood to be pumped through the lungs for oxygenation.
The foramen ovale is initially closed by a "flap valve," similar to a spring-loaded door. The valve remains closed because the pressure in the left atrium is slightly higher than the pressure in the right atrium. In most people, the flap valve actually seals over, and the foramen ovale completely disappears. In a small percentage of individuals, however, there is incomplete sealing of the valve.
This incomplete seal is what is termed patent foramen ovale, although it remains closed because of the pressure differential between the two atria. (Patent is Latin for open, indicating the incompleteness of the seal.) In rare instances, the foramen ovale remains completely open - this condition is more pronounced and is called atrial septal defect." :o
Clipped from DAN:
"What is patent foramen ovale? The foramen ovale is an opening, or communication, between the right atrium and left atrium in the heart. (Foramen is Latin for opening, or aperture; ovale is, appropriately, Latin for oval, indicating the shape of the aperture.) The normal passage of blood in the adult human is from the great veins of the body, through the right atrium into the right ventricle, and then via the pulmonary artery to the lungs. Blood then returns via the pulmonary veins into the left atrium. It is then pumped into the left ventricle and via the arteries to the various tissues of the body.
In the developing fetus, however, the lungs are not functional. Blood, therefore, bypasses the lungs predominantly through the foramen ovale, directly from the right atrium to the left atrium. After birth, the foramen ovale closes, allowing blood to be pumped through the lungs for oxygenation.
The foramen ovale is initially closed by a "flap valve," similar to a spring-loaded door. The valve remains closed because the pressure in the left atrium is slightly higher than the pressure in the right atrium. In most people, the flap valve actually seals over, and the foramen ovale completely disappears. In a small percentage of individuals, however, there is incomplete sealing of the valve.
This incomplete seal is what is termed patent foramen ovale, although it remains closed because of the pressure differential between the two atria. (Patent is Latin for open, indicating the incompleteness of the seal.) In rare instances, the foramen ovale remains completely open - this condition is more pronounced and is called atrial septal defect." :o