Though it had been generally accepted in the past that people with asthma should not dive, many people with asthma are scuba diving. People with asthma need to weigh the risk before scuba diving. Asthma and scuba diving are a potentially dangerous combination. If someone with asthma would like to dive, the person should understand the risks and know the guidelines that should determine whether or not it is safe for an asthma patient to dive. Unfortunately, there are no universal guidelines for asthmatics who want to dive.

If divers with asthma develop a blockage in their airway while they are diving, it could cause a pulmonary barotrauma or air embolism. Both of those conditions can be fatal. Pulmonary barotraumas are caused by an overexpansion of the lungs by changes in pressure while diving. If divers have air in the lungs and hold their breath while ascending from a dive, the air expands under the lesser pressure. The overexpansion can cause air sacs to rupture. As a result air may get trapped in the blood, which is an air embolism.

An air embolism can cause a variety of physical problems. The air bubble could block blood flow to the heart or brain. Air could leak from the lungs and be trapped in the chest cavity. The pressure from air in the chest cavity could cause the lung to collapse.

A common guideline categorizes types of asthma as safe for diving or unsafe. Allergic asthma and diving are not considered to be as risky as other types of asthma. Many different organizations warn against diving with exercise-induced asthma. Another guideline is that people with asthma who rely on the use of a rescue inhaler should not dive. An asthma attack while diving could be fatal. Obviously, a diver cannot use an asthma inhaler during a dive. If the person’s asthma is well controlled on a daily dose of a long-acting asthma medicine, they are less likely to experience problems during a dive.

Divers with asthma are discouraged from diving if they have had recent asthma symptoms or needed to use their asthma inhalers. Some guidelines say that a person with asthma should not scuba dive if they have any asthma symptoms within forty-eight hours before the dive. Some guidelines say that someone with asthma should not participate in scuba diving if the person has had any asthma symptoms within the last five years. Other guidelines say someone who has ever had symptoms of asthma in their lifetime should not scuba dive.

So, obviously there is a large discrepancy in the different standards for asthma and scuba diving. One thing is for certain. Someone with asthma should be aware of the risks of scuba diving and not even consider scuba diving if their asthma is not well-controlled.