A good dive medical includes several components that a medical professional should inspect. The general examination includes checking for cardiovascular fitness and gastrointestinal function, visual ability, and barotrauma. Doctors may recommend additional tests to evaluate your diving abilities. If you have any history of ear infection, it is important to speak with your physician. However, even if you don't have a history of ear infections, a dive physical will provide the necessary information.
Examining cardiovascular fitness
It is important to assess your cardiovascular fitness before you decide to pursue diving as a hobby, or even as a career. This may sound like a simple task, but it is not. If you are unable to walk a block, don't sign up for a diving class. Instead, you should exercise for 20 minutes four to five times a week. You might need to walk for as little as a quarter of a mile.
Examining the gastrointestinal function
Because ischemic colitis is possible during a diving expedition, it is crucial to check the digestive function of divers. Belching and abdominal discomfort are common symptoms in divers. However, very little information is available on the serious gastrointestinal complications that can result from diving. A few rare conditions of the gastrointestinal system have been reported. These include gastric rupture from intra-gastric expansion and massive pneumoperitoneum which result from lung barotrauma. However, scuba diving has not been shown to cause mesenteric blood clotsis, acute Ischemia colitis, or hemorhagic Colitis.
Examining visual acuity
Diver physicals are used to verify that divers can perform the skills required and to evaluate a diver's eyesight. The diving professional will request that a diver complete a visual ability questionnaire to assess his or her vision. Although the goal of the test is to evaluate a diver's near and distant vision, it also measures the person's visual acuity.
Barotrauma screening
If you're going scuba diving, you should take extra precautions to check for barotrauma. The word barotrauma is derived from the Greek words baros, meaning pressure, and trauma, which means injury. Dive pressure can cause damage or rupture to the eardrums. You can get this condition if you are suffering from a cold, congestion, or while diving. This can cause symptoms such as nausea and vomiting.
Checking for Asthma
Before you go on a diving vacation, consult your doctor if you think you might have asthma. The symptoms of asthma can become worse or more severe, and can be triggered by diving. Oral steroids can be prescribed by your doctor to treat your asthma. You should always keep an inhaler onboard your dive boat as a precaution. Your physician can also run an exercise test to evaluate your asthma, and perform a lung function test to determine the severity of your condition.