Fatal scuba diving accident. A case report

Deaths during SCUBA (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving activities are becoming more frequent. As written in literature, death can occur both to professional divers and to those who practice recreational diving. The latter activity is becoming very common. Even if new advances and equipment improvements have made SCUBA diving safer, there is a high risk of injury, or even death. A 41-year-old Spanish male, professional scuba diver, died while he was working to clear the wreck of a cruise ship. The death was due to his being crushed between the side of the ship and the arm of the crane. The autopsy was performed 48 hours later. No foamy content was found in the trachea and main bronchi; no alcohol was found in the blood of the deceased; neither signs of pulmonary barotrauma nor cerebral arterial gas embolism were found; conjunctiva haemorrhage was absent; mild brain oedema was observed. A deep lacerated wound was seen on the pelvic floor, and the pelvic organs and the colon were protruding through the wound. The autopsy confirmed that the cause of death was the massive haemorrhage subsequent to the wound caused by the crush. In the daily routine of a forensic institute, lethal SCUBA diving accidents are not common to observe. This is a particular manner of death during SCUBA diving, even because, although the patient suffered from huge injuries, the final cause of death was not stated to be due to drowning, as is usually what happens in SCUBA diving related deaths.