Scuba Diving/Data
Data and risk models are used on the main page.
Baseline Risk Values
Baseline Fatality Rate: 1.8 deaths per 100,000 DAN members per year. This value represents the average annual risk for an active diver who is a DAN member.
Baseline Decompression Sickness (DCS) Rate: 5 cases per 10,000 dives (0.05%). This is a representative rate for recreational, no-decompression dives.
Risk Factors
| Age_Selector | DCS_Age_Multiplier |
|---|---|
|
Under 40 years old |
1.0 |
|
40-49 years old |
1.34 |
|
50-59 years old |
1.81 |
|
60+ years old |
2.43 |
This table provides a risk multiplier for Decompression Sickness based on the diver's age. The risk of DCS increases steadily with age. The baseline is a diver under 40. The multipliers are derived from an odds ratio where the odds of DCS increase by 3% for each year of age.
| Sex_Selector | DCS_Sex_Multiplier |
|---|---|
|
Female |
1.0 |
|
Male |
2.11 |
This table provides a risk multiplier for DCS based on the diver's biological sex. After adjusting for other factors, males were found to have a significantly higher risk of DCS than females in a large study of recreational divers. Female is used as the baseline.
| Profile_Selector | DCS_Profile_Multiplier |
|---|---|
|
Stayed within No-Decompression Limits |
1.0 |
|
Required mandatory decompression stops |
10.0 |
This table adjusts DCS risk based on the dive profile. A standard recreational dive does not require mandatory decompression stops. Dives that do (often called "technical" dives) involve significantly more nitrogen exposure and have a substantially higher risk of DCS. The 10x multiplier is an estimate reflecting this well-established, significant increase in risk.
Pollock, N.W. "Decompression Sickness."
Risk Models
RiskModel: Scuba Diving/Data:FatalityRisk
Content: Your annual risk of a fatal incident is {{One_In_X|{result}}} per year.
The fatality risk model is based on the annual fatality rate observed among Divers Alert Network (DAN) members, which represents an active and safety-conscious diving population. This model does not include interactive factors and reflects an average risk over a year of diving.
RiskModel: Scuba Diving/Data:DCSRisk
Content: Your risk of Decompression Sickness (DCS) is {{One_In_X|{result}}} per dive.
The calculation starts with a baseline risk of 5 incidents per 10,000 recreational dives. This base rate is then adjusted by multipliers for age, biological sex, and the dive profile to estimate the risk for a single dive.
Initially created by Gemini 1.5.