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. 2014:2014:123581.
doi: 10.1155/2014/123581. Epub 2014 May 25.

A new measure of decompression sickness in the rat

Peter Buzzacott  1 , Aleksandra Mazur  1 , Qiong Wang  1 , Kate Lambrechts  1 , Michael Theron  1 , Jacques Mansourati  1 , François Guerrero  1
Affiliations

A new measure of decompression sickness in the rat

Peter Buzzacott et al. Biomed Res Int. 2014.

Abstract

In this study we assessed the reliability of a tilting-board grip score as a measure of decompression sickness in rats. In experiments using a hyperbaric compression/decompression protocol, rats were observed for signs of decompression sickness and their grip strength measured on a tilting particle board hinged to a metal frame. Angles at which rats lost grip were converted to gravitational vectors. Decreased mean grip scores following decompression were fitted to a logistic regression model with strain, age, and weight. Decrease in grip score was significantly associated with observed decompression sickness (P = 0.0036). The log odds ratio for decompression sickness = 1.40 (decrease in grip score). In rats with no decrease in mean grip score there was a 50% probability of decompression sickness (pDCS). This increased steadily with decreases in mean grip score. A decrease of 0.3 had a 60% pDCS, a decrease of 0.6 had a 70% pDCS, and a decrease of 2.1 had a 95% pDCS. The tilting board grip score is a reliable measure of the probability of decompression sickness.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The tilting board apparatus.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Correlation between weight and mean predive, postdive, and differential scores (n = 101).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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