This affects mainly scuba divers, who are swimming at
depths where the water pressure is much higher than near the surface, and they require
compressed air to breathe. This presents some problems, because the nitrogen they
breathe from this compressed air is not metabolized by the body. The longer the diver
is diving, the more nitrogen is absorbed into the tissues of the
body.
Then, as the diver returns to the surface, if they
ascend too quickly, the highly pressurized nitrogen in their tissues expands, causing
very painful symptoms in the tissues and muscles as blood flow is blocked. A diver can
notice these symptoms immediately, or they may onset later, but if they are going to get
the bends, they will know within 24 - 48 hours at the most. This is why divers have to
swim slowly towards the surface, breathing the entire way, to expel some of the nitrogen
gas from their system. This is known as decompression, and The Bends are sometimes
referred to as Decompression Syndrome.
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