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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Sports Act. Living
Sec. Exercise Physiology
Volume 6 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fspor.2024.1429732

Hyperbaric effects on heart rate in professional SCUBA divers in thermal water

Provisionally accepted
luigi Fattorini luigi Fattorini 1Angelo Rodio Angelo Rodio 2TOMMASO DI LIBERO TOMMASO DI LIBERO 2*Cristian Ieno Cristian Ieno 1Giovanna Tranfo Giovanna Tranfo 3Daniela Pigini Daniela Pigini 3Alessandro Pinto Alessandro Pinto 4Enrico Marchetti Enrico Marchetti 3
  • 1 Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Lazio, Italy
  • 2 Department of Human, Social and Health Sciences, University of Cassino, Cassino, Lazio, Italy
  • 3 Department of Medicine, Epidemiology, Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work (INAIL), Rome, Lazio, Italy
  • 4 Division of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Lazio, Italy

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Diving in SCUBA modality modifies human physiology in many ways. These modifications have been studied since Paul Bert in a seminal work. This area of research is very sensible to technological development. At now, it is possible to record heart rate (HR) continuously while diving. The study of HR changes in SCUBA diving at different depths in a constant temperature of thermal water is the objective of the present paper. 18 healthy subjects were enrolled and HR was recorded while SCUBA diving in thermal water at a constant temperature of 33.6°C in the deepest Italian pool at Montegrotto (Padova, Italy). Three depths were investigated: -20, -30 and -40 meters. The HR has been recorded with a Galileo SOL diving computer. The dive was subdivided into three phases: descent (DSC), steady on depth (STD), post-dive (RSF), and average HR was evaluated in each phase. Moreover, considering the DSC and STD time duration, a statistical linear regression of HR and relative parameters, intercept and slope, were here assessed. In STD phase, HR slope obtained by regression decreased with depth. A significant difference was found between the slope during STD at -20 vs -40 m (p ≤ 0.05). Present results emphasized different HR physiological adjustments among diving phases. Firstly, during the DSC, a rapid HR decrease is recognized as probably due to a vagal response; secondly, at STD, the inward blood redistribution requires another physiological adjustment. This latter is depth-dependent because of a reduction of cardiac variability. Present data highlight the important cardiac stress need to counteract the diving activity.

    Keywords: Bradycardia, dive response, thermoregulation, diving physiology, Organ perfusion, Venous return

    Received: 08 May 2024; Accepted: 20 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Fattorini, Rodio, DI LIBERO, Ieno, Tranfo, Pigini, Pinto and Marchetti. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: TOMMASO DI LIBERO, Department of Human, Social and Health Sciences, University of Cassino, Cassino, 03043, Lazio, Italy

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