The Journal of the Florida Medical Association
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Decompression sickness and cerebral gas embolism can present as dramatic and profound sudden onset injuries in patients engaged in tunnel work and compressed gas diving, including scuba. The history and management of these illnesses span centuries. ⋯ Gas embolism results from the direct transit of molecular gas from a pulmonary or intravascular origin into the arterial circulation causing occlusion of a distal locus. Treatment relates to increasing hydrostatic pressure, thus maximizing the gradient for gas reabsorption and dissolution and subsequently gas excretion via the lungs.