What happens if you scuba dive and rise too quickly?

The "bends": Some complications of scuba diving include barotrauma, decompression sickness, and nitrogen narcosis. Decompression sickness involves bubbles of nitrogen and oxygen coming out of solution from tissues into the vessels, where they can block vessels, cause tissue rupture, and activate clotting. It is sometimes called "the bends, " because pain in joints may cause the victim to stoop over in posture.

Several things...: As dr. Ekizian noted, dcs is a serious problem that can be caused by ascending too fast. In addition, if you don't exhale fast enough while rising, you are at risk for lung damage from too much pressure. This can lead to a collapsed lung and/or air entering your bloodstream and causing an arterial gas embolism (age). Age, which can block blood flow to the brain, is very serious and can be fatal.

Agree w earlier: Responses. Arterial gas embolism is the first concern that comes to mind. Decompression sickness can occur but is more of a concern with deep diving/ mixed gas diving/ saturation diving. Hyperbaric chambers are needed for urgent tx.

Dangerous: While scuba diving, you breath in pressurized air. If you come up too fast, the pressurized air in your lungs will expand too fast for your body to compensate causing lung tissue damage allowing air bubbles to go in your blood circulation and cause embolism which could be fatal. The bends can also occur that way depending on your diving profile (how deep and how long you were under water).