Mailing List Archive Mailing List Archive
Bill Bott wrote: > .... It seems that > Richard is prone to seasickness. It was not uncommon for him to use > Dramamine!!! A freaking sedative!!! The damn fool apparently took > Dramamine before the dive. That explains why he just appeared to fall > asleep. He DID just fall asleep. Dramamine: dimenhydrinate 50mg Primary action: Histamine H1 receptor antagonist (antihistamine) 1. Especially if the drug's been taken within a few hours of death, blood levels should be high enough that it should be readily detectable to routine postmortem toxicological screening (which commonly includes other related antihistamines). Bill: do any of your sources have information on the results of such a screen? 2. I have no info on research on this drug's side effects under hyperbaric conditions (END 136 ft), but its sedative action limits many people taking it even under normobaric conditions. It is _not_ recommended to drive, operate machinery etc under the influence of this drug. The sedative action of this class of drug is profoundly enhanced when combined with other sedative factors. I know of no other drugs, commonly taken for sea-sickness, which may be safe under demanding conditions. (Although I do have some pharmacological tricks up my drysuit sleeve, I cannot guarantee their safety, and would not take them myself on a challenging dive.) Doubtless readers have their own opinions on the subject, ranging from particular recipes to strict non-use of drugs. I note that in 7% of deaths examined by the NUADC drugs were considered contributory to the deaths, but the reference I have doesn't specify the type of drug (or the type of diving.) In a test to 5.4 ATA, Walsh & Burch found that Dramamine impaired cognitive function to a widely varying level (in hyperbaric air) depending on individual susceptibility, but there was no specific mention of unconsciousness. regards, gerards refs: 1 Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics 7th edn., MacMillan Publishing. (I've got the 8th edn on CDROM. Must fire it up one day...) 2 Edmonds, Lowry & Pennefather: Diving and Subaquatic Medicine 3rd edn., Butterworth Heinemann. 3. Walsh & Burch (1979) The acute effects of commonly used drugs on human performance in hyperbaric air. Undersea Biomedical Research 6 (suppl), 49. (Article not sighted, cited in #2) -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
Navigate by Author:
[Previous]
[Next]
[Author Search Index]
Navigate by Subject:
[Previous]
[Next]
[Subject Search Index]
[Send Reply] [Send Message with New Topic]
[Search Selection] [Mailing List Home] [Home]