DAN , through its partnership with subsidiary AGI, has contributed $100,000 to fund a study of the causes of immersion pulmonary edema, a lung injury identified in water enthusiasts. Richard E. Moon, M.D., DAN senior medical consultant, will conduct the study, which is targeted for completion in late 2008.
Moon is also professor of anesthesiology and medicine at Duke University Medical Center and medical director of the DUMC’s Center for Hyperbaric Medicine and Environmental Physiology
IPE, an accumulation of water in the lungs of swimmers and divers, causes cough, shortness of breath and reduced blood oxygen levels. It occurs in both military and civilian swimmers and divers during heavy exertion, most often in cold water.
DAN President and CEO Dan Orr and DAN Board Chairman Dennis Liberson presented the check to Moon on Aug. 30. "We are very proud to support Dr. Moon's important research project,” Orr said. “This is just one of many projects that DAN will support in the future, expanding the body of knowledge in dive medicine and improving diving safety."
Moon said studying divers or swimmers with IPE to understand the causes has been difficult, because once the subjects have been removed from the water and given first aid treatment, the conditions that precipitated the condition are no longer present. “For the study, we will recruit recreational divers who have experienced IPE, test them in the experimental apparatus that we have constructed and look for specific genetic anomalies,” Moon said.
Formerly believed to be rare, IPE has been reported to DAN with increasing frequency over the past three years. Typically it resolves completely in less than a day, but it has been fatal; in other cases, immersion pulmonary edema has recurred. Its exact cause is not known, although scientists believe IPE may be caused by high blood pressure within the vessels of the lung, specifically in the pulmonary artery and capillaries.
The study will supplement a Navy-funded study presently being conducted at Duke.
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For more information on this release contact DAN Communications at editors@DiversAlertNetwork.org or call +1-919-684-2948 ext. 626 or 629.
13 Sept 2007
DAN Funds Major New Research Study
8 Sept 2007
APEC officials agree on global warming statement
SYDNEY (AP): Pacific Rim nations on Friday reached agreement on a joint statement on global warming, overcoming bickering between rich and poor nations about whether to include targets on emissions, two Asian officials said.
Experts from the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum approved the wording of a final draft statement on climate change that would be handed to leaders at their summit starting Saturday, the officials said.
Read whole article at Environmental News Network5 Sept 2007
Promoting Water Security in the Pacific
Managing and protecting freshwater resources is of vital importance for the Pacific region’s health and wealth. A recent mission by the IUCN Water Programme is leading to the development of the Nadi River Catchment area, to help both secure water supply and prevent downstream flooding.
With the opening of IUCN’s Oceania headquarters in Fiji, January 2007, Director Taholo Kami aims to work with regional partners and members to develop the IUCN’s Water Programme to support the many water challenges the region faces.
“We want to work in the Nadi River catchment. We are looking at one or two of the other islands and will work towards agreements with local communities on specific improvements in their water situation,” said Dr Bergkamp, Head of the IUCN Water Programme. IUCN hopes to have specialist water program staff in place over the next year to look into water projects with its partners. Dr Bergkamp believes key for the region is to look at the chain of supply for water from the mountains to the reef, and its role in development, economics and good governance.
Read full article here...
