title: A review of 17 years of telephone calls to the Australian Diver Emergency Service (DES).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The Diver Emergency Service (DES) in Australia provides specialised medical advice on diving incidents 24 hours a day to divers, dive operators, families and health professionals. It is operated from the Hyperbaric Medicine Unit of the Royal Adelaide Hospital where the physician-on-call also carries the DES phone (1800-088200 or +61-8-8212-9242).
  
  
  METHODS
  Data from calls to the service have been compiled into a computer database since 1991. Calls for the 17 years from 1991 through 2007 were analysed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 6,083 calls were logged, an average of 358 calls a year. Calls from Queensland and New South Wales each accounted for 25% of calls. Calls originating from outside Australia have been increasing and now make up 25% of calls. The diver themselves initiated the call 50% of the time and 66% of the calls were about male divers. The age range of divers was 12 to 95 years old. The mean age has increased from 30 to 36 years, with a greater proportion of calls from divers aged 50 years or older (from 2% to 14%). The largest group of calls (37%) related to whether symptoms might be the result of decompression illness (DCI). DCI was considered to be the probable diagnosis in 17% of calls, and possible in a further 12%. Other common findings were barotrauma (11%) and questions regarding fitness to dive (15%). Older divers were more likely to call in relation to a medical problem.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Interpretation of these data is qualitative but the prolonged collection period of 17 years allows some consideration of trends as to who calls the DES and why.
authors.affiliation: Divers Emergency Service and Medical Director at the Hyperbaric Medicine Unit, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide SA 5034, Australia. david.wilkinson@health.sa.gov.au
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wilkinson
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goble
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D001469:Barotrauma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D003665:Decompression Sickness / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D004242:Diving / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004632:Emergency Medical Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015277:Hotlines / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019114:Remote Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017678:Sex Distribution; D055815:Young Adult