This appears to have been lost from the archives over the years.

I believe that this had been the "PADI-2020.TXT" file that had been in
the Peter Yee archives.

Either way, its worth posting so that it gets archived at Google.

-hh

Path: cfa250!cfa!husc6!mailrus!purdue!decwrl!sgi!koontz@oregon
From: koontz@oregon
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Subject: Re: (20/20, and the bends) (was Re: Red Sea Recommendations?)
Summary: PADI and DAN response to 20/20
Keywords: uninformed opinion warning
Message-ID: <25227@sgi.SGI.COM>
Date: 20 Jan 89 02:56:07 GMT
References: <1628@lindy.Stanford.EDU> <7291@venera.isi.edu>
<535@scifi.UUCP>
Sender: daemon@sgi.SGI.COM
Distribution: usa
Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc., Mountain View, CA
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In article <535@scifi.UUCP>, njs@scifi.UUCP (Nicholas J. Simicich)
writes:

I both saw the 20/20 story, and have a copy of the letter from PADI,
which
includes a rebutle from DAN (yes, I am an instructor).  I feel that
the
show was more flash and sensationalism than anything else.

The brunt of the `attack' on PADI appeared to be the issue of
uninformed
risk.

PADI maintains that its members are well aware that the PADI
educational
system gives clear warnings regarding the inherent risks in diving,
whether
decompression sickness or others.

(One of the longer discussions we had during my Instructor
Developement Course
(IDC), as I recall was how to present information without down playing
the
risks or scaring the student off.)

PADI's warnings regarding dive tables and decompression sickness are
the
strongest in the industry (this was not mentioned by 20/20).

---------

Comments:

Three of the people appearing on the episode have been subject of
PADI
ethics investigations (as members of PADI) and all have subsequently
made
statements or taken actions that appear vindictive against PADI and
PADI
Instructors.

A sizeable portion of the persons appearing on the show are involved
in
one of two litigations with PADI.  This may be analoguous to trying a
case in the newspapers.

20/20 showed the risks of diving using the U.S. Navy Dive Tables to be
worse than  actually occurs:

Part of the letter is a response from Dr. Peter Bennett, Executive
Director
of DAN at Duke University, Dr. Richard Moon, Medical Director of DAN,
Joel
Dovenbarger,RN Medical Coordinator of DAN, and Chis Wachholz, RN
Marketing
Director, DAN.  The DAN letter (response to the 20/20 episode) was
sent to
all certifying agencies.

Portions of the DAN letter quoted:

--------QUOTE follows-------

Dear Colleague:

   DAN is very much aware of the very real concern of divers,
dive instructors, equipment manufacturers and dive associations
at the biased and perhaps overly sensational TV program presented
on 20/20 on Friday 30 December 1988.  This letter, to be sent to
all dive associations, is intended to present the relevant data
and alleviate some of the anxiety that this program may have created
among sports divers.

   The program was initiated by an articale for "Undercurrent"
written by Dr. William Shane, a NOAA physician at St. Croix on
the Aquarius habitat project.  When the TV crew interviewed DAN
staff the y were given considerable information on the relative
risks of diving accidents and tables and diving safety together
with other material after they left which wasn not utilized.  Nor
was it explained that the so-called "dive tables which were an
intentionally dangerous product" (the PADI tables) were in fact
the U.S. Navy tables used by divers around the world for the last
30 years as the standard.

   According to U.S. Navy data from dives which were close to
the no decompression limits a decompression sickness incidence of
1.2% to 2.2% may be predicted for dives from 50 to 190 ft.
Combining several studies the incidence would be 1.2%. Many of
these episodes of DCS are pain only (type I), and not the more
serious neurological type.

   Although 20/20 singled out PADI for adverse attention it
should be pointed out that PADI was the first dive association to
initiate and develop new tables for sports divers and organize a
test program.

--------end QUOTE-----------

DAN has actual statistics for sport divers, based on the unknown of
how many persons are actually engaged in how many dives per year.
What is known is the number of incidents of DCS:

--------QUOTE follows-------

    Per diver, the range is .2% in the worst case to .017% in
the best, or 1 accident for every 500-5000 divers.  The injury
incidence of sport scuba diving ranks favorably whether at the
top or bottom of this range.  Based on the 1987 United States
Safety Council report, for example, injury incident for skiing
was .29% and .35% for snowmobiling per participant.

    Looking at incidence per dive, we get a range of .033% in
the worst case (or 3 cases in 10,900 dives) to .003% (3 cases in
100,000 dives).

    Thus as may be seen while diving is not without risk, it has
a much better safety record today than many beleive or 20/20 im-
plied.  Such "theorectical" numbers as "1 in 20 divers may be
hurt" or even "1 in 50" proposed by 20/20 therefore exaggerate
the true risk.

    That is not to say that caution and good training is ad-
visable.  It is true, for expample, that over 50% of the 500 cases
above were diving within the U.S. Navy tables.  However, there
are many mitigating curcimstances such as arterial gas embolism,
frequency of diving, rate of ascent, medically disqualified
divers, decompression dives, fatigue, cold, current, exertion,
etc. which can increase the risk of DCS.

    It is  true that of the 17 cases of serious DCS evalutated
with bubble contrast echocardiography at Duke Hyberbaric Center,

11 showed a patent foramen ovale (or hole in the heart) letting
small bubbles pass directly through to the arterial circulation
rather than be cleared by the lungs.  However, this is new and
ongoing research which few at present know about. When and if
this work is substantiated the dive associations will be notified
so as to advise all in the sports diving industry.

    Dr, Ian Calder's work in England on spinal cord injury is
also ongoing.  The occurrence of spinal cord damage in 3 of 11
divers who were apparencly normal is reason for concern.  All 3
of these divers were professional and 2 had been involved in
saturation diving.  On the other hand 3 sports divers examined
showed no such damage.  Much work is still required to confirm
the extent or probably cause, if any, of such possible injury in
sports divers.

    Divers need to know the facts concerning diving safety,
Diving medicine and physiology is a complex and diffeicutl field
for the expert, let alone the lay person.  DAN will do its best
to determince and inform prospective divers, divers, instructors
and the dive industry the true risks or safety hazards as they
come to light and in an unbiased a fashion as possbile.

    Although we did not seek the 20/20 TV program it is clear
that there is a need for an objective and unbiased body such as
DAN which can address the medical-safety issues.  The mission of
DAN is to continue to present solid advice and promote needed re-
search.

--------end QUOTE-----------

Disclaimer:  needless to say I do not represent PADI and any opinions
expressed are my own, unless shown to be quoted.