Experimental modeling of pulmonary barotrauma.

The main causes of pulmonary barotrauma include loss of consciousness or panic attack of a diver and emergence from underwater with a constricted glottis. However, numerous publications and our observations indicate that the majority of fully symptomatic cases of pulmonary barotrauma develop without any evident errors in the ascending technique. Therefore, an attempt was made to examine such cases using the experimental model of pulmonary barotrauma designed by the authors. The experiment was conducted on 32 rabbits divided into three groups: Group C--not subjected to any treatment; Group E--with induced pulmonary barotrauma; and Group CT--subjected only to compression followed by quick decompression. In Groups E and CT, the same morphological markers of pulmonary barotrauma were detected in the lungs, although their severity varied. Morphological markers of pulmonary barotrauma were observed both in the group where the tube was not ob-structed (E) and in animals exposed only to rapid decompression (CT)