Penn Medicine's hyperbaric medicine physicians are among the world's experts in dive medicine and have decades of experience providing specialty care for divers.
Why Choose Dive Medicine at Penn?
With roots in the origins of dive medicine, we are among the best equipped centers for treating decompression illness and other diving-related injuries.
All of our providers are Diving Medical Advisory Committee (DMAC) Level IID certified, meaning we can provide care for diving accidents and illnesses, as well as offer dive physicals for all types of divers.
Treatment for Dive Emergencies
Our physicians, critical care nurses and highly specialized hyperbaric chamber staff are available to treat dive emergencies at any time.
Decompression Illness
Decompression illness can occur when a diver swims to the surface too quickly, causing tiny nitrogen bubbles to form in the blood or bodily tissues. Symptoms of decompression illness may include:
- brain fog
- fatigue
- joint and muscle pain
- numbness
- paralysis
- poor coordination or balance
- weakness
If you or a dive buddy are concerned that you may have decompression illness, visit the nearest emergency department or call 911 immediately.
We work with emergency departments across the mid-Atlantic region to treat people with decompression illness. Emergency providers can call the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania transfer center at 215-662-2335 to request to transfer a patient with decompression illness. We also can offer consultations for decompression illness if you do not require a transfer to our hospital.
Dive Physicals
Scuba diving is a physically and mentally demanding activity and certain requirements must be met to dive safely. Certain conditions may put divers at an increased risk for decompression illness, loss of consciousness and other conditions that may cause injury or death.
We offer three different types of dive physicals, depending on your needs:
- Recreational diving physicals
- Commercial diving physicals
- Scientific diving physicals
Recreational Diving Physicals
We provide dive physicals for all types of recreational divers, from casual divers to technical divers. We also provide the necessary physical exams for certification courses, as well as return – to-diving exams after diving accidents.
Commercial Diving Physicals
We provide the required physicals for working divers in accordance with the Association of Diving Contractors International (ADCI) standards. Our staff are familiar with and ready to help with coordination of the required testing accompanying this exam.
Scientific Diving Physicals
We provide the required physicals for scientific divers in accordance with the American Academy of Underwater Sciences (AAUS) standards.