Quote: (Originally Posted by
andrespp)
Just finished a safety diving course. IAW training gurus, dehydration is the main factor that leads to DCS. It is deemed to be more significant than age, obesity, etc.
With all due respect to your training gurus, this is not proven by any stretch of the imagination. Indeed, prior to the recent study in Br J Sports Med, there were no studies of direct relevance in humans and the animal studies were conflicting. Moreover, the recent study in humans demonstrated an increase in venous bubble formation in less well hydrated divers; not an increase in risk of DCS. The correlation between venous bubble grade and DCS risk is not as good as you might think based on first principles. Some of the other citations provided by Gene are only indirectly relevant, and are from non peer reviewed publications whose value is uncertain.
All we can say at the present time is that the weight of evidence favours the hypothesis that dehydration is a risk factor for DCS. It certainly does not justify a claim that dehydration is the pre-eminent cause.
Warm regards,
Simon M