Posted by Karl E. Huggins on October 17, 2000 at 13:16:59:
In Reply to: Can anyone reccomend a good seasickness med? posted by msblucow on October 16, 2000 at 21:56:14:
There is an interesting article on the negative effects of Dimenhydrinate (Dramamine) under pressure in the latest Pharmacotherapy.
I am posting the abstract. The full article can be found at:
http://www.medscape.com/PP/Pharmacotherapy/2000/v20.n09/pharm2009.05.tay/pharm2009.05.tay-01.html
You need to subscribe to Medscape, but it is free.
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The Psychometric and Cardiac Effects of Dimenhydrinate in the Hyperbaric Environment
Abstract
Study Objectives: To examine the psychometric and cardiac effects of dimenhydrinate at 1 and 3 atmospheres (atm) of pressure (0 and 66 feet of sea water, respectively), and to make recommendations about the drug's safety in the diving environment.
Design: Double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study.
Setting: Monoplace hyperbaric chamber of a university hospital.
Subjects:. Thirty active divers (mean age 38 yrs).
Interventions: A bank of seven tests was used to assess cognitive function during four different dive combinations: placebo-1 atm, placebo-3 atm, dimenhydrinate-1 atm, and dimenhydrinate-3 atm.
Measurements and Main Results: Heart rate and cardiac rhythm were recorded during all dives. Repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance was used to analyze the effects of dimenhydrinate, depth, and drug-depth interaction. Dimenhydrinate resulted in a significant decrease in scores of mental flexibility (trail-making, part B, p0.05). It had no effect on mean heart rate (p>0.05), although frequent unifocal ventricular ectopic beats occurred in two subjects after ingestion of the drug. Depth resulted in a significant decrease in verbal memory test scores (p=0.001) and mean heart rate (p<0.001).
Conclusion: Dimenhydrinate adversely affects mental flexibility. This effect, when added to the adverse effect of depth on memory, may contribute to the dangers of diving.
[Pharmacotherapy 20(9):1051-1054, 2000. © 2000 Pharmacotherapy Publications, Inc.]