Dr. Frans J. Cronjé Practice
MBChB (UP), BSc(Hons), MSc (Aerospace), DOM
Designated Senior Aviation Medical Examiner
Diving Medical Examiner - Class II (Air)
Occupational Medical Practioner
Near Tygervalley, Ridgeworth (Bellville)
PLEASE NOTE: Dr Frans & Sr Lucie Cronje have accepted a training and clinical position in Aerospace and Hyperbaric Medicine at the American Mission Hospital in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
The South African practice will not be active in their absence.
The Booking tab will not be active.
Note there is now also a LIGHT BLUE BUTTON with a list of all Senior DAME's in CT area and a
DARK BLUE BUTTON with all the Diving Medical Practitioners in South Africa on a Map with their details as you Zoom in.
Kindly make appointments with them.
All your records are available to them through the SACAA EMPIC system or SAUHMA Database, so your visit to them should be simple and without any difficulty. I appreciate your support of our practice. Some of you have been with us for many years, and we will miss you. With great appreciation. Dr Frans & Sr Lucie Cronje
Pathophysiology of Decompression Illness
Decompression Illness is a gas bubble disease that may occur in association with compressed gas diving. Under certain circumstances bubbles may also develop within the body at high altitudes (e.g., loss of cabin pressure at altitudes > 18,000 ft or in space during extra-vehicular activities). Gas bubbles may also enter the circulation iatrogenically e.g., during cardiac bypass surgery, open heart surgery and several other surgical procedures, or as a result of pulmonary barotrauma. This presentation, however, focuses on gas bubble disease associated with compressed gas diving.
Because the manifestations can range from subtle to severe, the diagnosis may potentially be overlooked or, alternatively, overdiagnosed. As such, the spectrum of target organ damage is used as a framework to establish an optimal index of suspicion as well as a broader pathophysiological perspective from which to choose and rationalise recompression and adjunctive medical treatments.
This presentation represents our current understanding of decompression illness pathophysiology and the clinical manifestations we observe. It addresses the various therapeutic strategies that have appeared over the years, and their limitations.