NNE Decompression Chamber

(Naval Hospital of Athens)

Article: George Petrou

Photos: George Petrou - HUE Archive

Hyperbaric Decompression Chamber N.N.A.

Από την εποχή που ο άνθρωπος ήταν αναγκαστικά τροφοσυλλέκτης, άρχισε δειλά δειλά να κατακτάει τον βυθό έχει διανυθεί μεγάλη διαδρομή...

Today, we all enjoy this underwater wonder of our planet with ease, whether as recreational divers or as technical scuba divers exploring the depths of the sea and beyond. In these activities, our guardian angels are the people who support the Decompression Chambers with their expertise. And such an advanced system of Decompression Chambers is that of the Athens Naval Hospital that we present in this article. The installation of such a high-level Hyperbaric Decompression Chamber at the Athens Naval Hospital is undoubtedly a very important event in the diving history of this place.

Scuba diving support has made huge leaps and we can all now feel proud (unnecessarily).

Θυμάμαι, όχι πολύ παλιά, σε χαλεπές εποχές ότι είχα κάνει ένα άρθρο πάλι για τον τότε θάλαμο και το ηρωικό προσωπικό του. Χαίρομαι που σήμερα, χάριν αυτού του άρθρου, έχω την ευκαιρία να παρουσιάσω το νέο θάλαμο η καλύτερα το νέο σύστημα θαλάμων μας.

Για αυτό το λόγο ζήτησα από τον Κο Βαβάση Παύλο , Παθολόγο, ιατρός Υπερβαρικής και Διευθυντής του θαλάμου ΝΝΑ να μας μιλήσει για αυτόν τον νέο θάλαμο.  
 

Κος Βαβάσης:

Για αυτό το επίτευγμα της φωτογραφίας, ο κόπος και οι αγωνίες δεν ήταν λίγες. Η αφοσίωση και η προσήλωση στο στόχο δεν περιγράφονται με λόγια.

One of the best Diving and Hyperbaric Decompression Chambers in the world is a fact.

The Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine Unit is now ready to receive any type of diving accident (caused at any depth, using any inhaled mixture such as (air - Nitrox - Heliox - Trimix) that take place throughout the Greek territory. 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, one of the highly trained staff of the Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine Unit will answer the phone to any question or will receive the patient diver for treatment.

But let's start from the beginning.

In November 2004, the installation of the new Decompression Chamber System at the Athens Naval Hospital began. At the same time, the training of the already specialized personnel in Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine and Nursing, by the manufacturer HAUX, began, in order to be certified for the operation of the new Unit.

Η πρώτη θεραπεία έγινε τον Ιανουάριο του 2005 και έκτοτε βρίσκεται στις υπηρεσίες του Έλληνα πολίτη.

The Depressurization Chamber System consists of three sections.

• The first, the Simulation Chamber (SC), has the ability to compress to 5.5 bar and can accommodate 12 patients at the same time, while in case of emergency, it can treat up to 24 sitting or 8 lying patients. The SC is where Hyperbaric Oxygen treatments and the treatment of most diving accidents are carried out.

• The second section, the Therapy Chamber, has the ability to be compressed to 25 bar and accommodate 4 patients and 9 in case of emergency. This chamber system has great capabilities in terms of operational depth (25 bar) and the provision of any mixture needed, as well as the compression of the chambers with the breathing gas (gas mixtures e.g. Trimix), a capability that never existed in the past. It also has the international connection method (bayonet type) in order to adapt the transported chamber to the patient and not have to decompress during its transfer to the Decompression Chamber System.

• The third section, the Diagnostic Chamber, has the same features as the TC except that it also has the ability to be half filled with water! (wet and dry compartment).

It can accommodate up to 4 people and its use is purely research, supporting experiments and testing materials or new applications.

This entire System of Decompression Chambers communicate with each other and can operate simultaneously or independently at different pressures.

It is supported by powerful compressors, oxygen cylinder arrays and gas mixtures. They are operated via computers (full computerized system) but there is also the possibility of manual operation in case of system failure.

It supports saturated diving, where completely identical diving conditions can be created in terms of the breathable gas mixture and the presence of the water element, a possibility that exists in few diving centers in the world.

All of this, together with the excellent training of the staff in the field of Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine and Nursing, make the MKII, a model unit in the medical and diving world. The experience of the Director of the MKII, P. Vavasis PN and the Curator, B.N. Kalentzos PN, is many years. Their continuous training and their mandatory two-year stay and obtaining the specialty of Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine in world-class centers abroad (currently G. Sidiras PN is undergoing this training), has given them the ability to treat extremely seriously ill patients. The arduous but effective training of the nursing staff, together with the experience of annual training abroad, of the Head A. Chandrinou PN in a corresponding center, in order to receive specialization in Diving and Hyperbaric Nursing, raise the bar in the treatment of diving accidents... and not only... very high. The patient requires accompaniment in the Decompression Chamber and the staff of the MKYI is ready for these requirements at any time. From the smallest, which in this case is Koumoulidis G., Aspiotis V. and Bakogeorgos K., to the largest, Papaisidorou G., Zomenou H. and Baniora D., the readiness for emergency-unplanned diving, of unknown time and depth, with the aim of providing full medical and nursing care to the patient, reaches 100%. And if specialized hospitalization of a seriously ill patient in the Intensive Care Unit is required, the Head and the D. Tzavellas PN is always at his service. In every diving accident there is an escort of a trained nurse who provides nursing care to the patient (Medications, Clinical examination) following medical instructions.

The average treatment time for a diving accident is 5 - 6 hours. In severe cases, the treatment time reaches more than 14 hours. The NNA Decompression Chamber system has supported hundreds of diving accidents, just imagine that until five years ago, 50 - 70 diving accidents occurred per year, with a reduction of these to 20 - 30 accidents per year. The treatment of 98% of diving accidents is complete recovery with only 2% presenting mild residual symptoms due to the severity of the injuries and the delay in starting treatment in the decompression chamber. Divers come to or contact the chamber when they suffer from signs and symptoms of Divers' Illness and much more rarely due to a suspected incident. Of all Hyperbaric Oxygen treatments in Decompression Chambers, only 5% of cases are related to a diving accident.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is the medical treatment method in which the patient inhales 100% O2 at a pressure greater than atmospheric. This pressure is achieved inside the Decompression Chamber where the patient breathes 100% O2 either with a “Duke Hood” or with a full-face mask. The applications of Hyperbaric Oxygen (HBO) in clinical practice are classified into acute and chronic.

ΟΞΕΙΕΣ ΕΝΔΕΙΞΕΙΣ Περιλαμβάνουν τις καταστάσεις στις οποίες η συμμετοχή του ΗΒΟ κατέχει καθοριστικό ρόλο στην επιβίωση του ασθενούς και / ή συμβάλλει στη πρόληψη σοβαρών επιπλοκών:

• Air Embolism

• Diver's Disease

• Carbon Monoxide Poisoning and Smoke Inhalation

•       Αεριογόνος Γάγγραινα (Clostridial Myonecrosis)

• Crushing Fracture, Incomplete Fracture Healing, Chronic Recurrent Osteomyelitis

• Compartmentation Syndrome and other Traumatic Ischemias

• Difficulty in Healing Problematic Wounds - Ulcers (Diabetic - Venous Ulcers)

•       Νεκρωτική Φασιίτιδα (υποδόριου ιστού, μυός, fascia)

• Skin Grafts

• Thermal Burns

CHRONIC INDICATIONS Mainly included are syndromes in which the therapeutic participation of HBO aims to stimulate and reactivate the reparative defense and tissue repair mechanisms:

• Chronic ischemic ulcers

•       Οστεομυελίτιδα

• Radiation-induced disorders due to cancer (osteoradionecrosis, radiation soft tissue necrosis)

Είναι δύσκολο να περιγραφεί σε μερικές σειρές η ευεργετική προσφορά του ΗΒΟ σε τέτοιες καταστάσεις. Μια φωτογραφία όμως, αξίζει όσο χίλιες λέξεις και στην περίπτωσης της φωτογραφίας, ίσως κάποιος θα μπορούσε να γράψει ολόκληρο βιβλίο.

George Petrou: The new NNA chamber is a fact and we can all feel proud.

Και επειδή το σωστό και το καλό πρέπει να αναγνωρίζεται:

1. Συγχαρητήρια σε αυτούς που είχαν την πρωτοβουλία και έφεραν τον θάλαμο στη χώρα μας.

2. Congratulations to the ward staff because what is valuable is the proper utilization of each "Tool". The A and Z of the ward are its staff who have demonstrated excellent scientific training, hard work, human interest in the patient's problem and ethics.

3. Congratulations to the predecessors and fathers of Hyperbaric Medicine in Greece, Messrs. Athanasenas and Vasilis Zachariades.

Τέλος... όλοι εμείς θα πρέπει να μην ξεχνάμε πως η πρόληψη είναι η καλύτερη αντιμετώπιση.

Athens Navy Hospital Decompression Chamber

Article Writer: George Petrou

Since the time when man, was necessarily a food collector, started shamelessly conquering the underwater world has been a long journey ... Today all of us enjoy luxury underwater wonder either in recreational scuba diving or as technical divers exploring . In these activities our guardian angels are the people who support the Decompression chambers with their know-how. And one such sophisticated decompression chamber system is that of the Athens Naval Hospital that we present in this article.