Drowning
Medical Author: Benjamin C. Wedro, MD, FAAEM
Medical Editor: Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD
Debunking Summer Health Myths
Medical Author: Melissa Stoppler, M.D.
Medical Editor:
William C. Shiel, Jr, MD, FACP, FACR
As children, most of us heard lots of health advice. Unfortunately, some of
it, however well-intentioned, was medically incorrect. See if you've ever heard
- or believed - any of these common summer health myths.
- "Wait a half hour after eating before you can safely go swimming." This one seemed almost universally
accepted when I was a child and is still believed today. The myth involves the
possibility of suffering severe muscle cramping and drowning from swimming on
a full stomach. While it's true that the digestive process does divert the
circulation of the blood toward the
gut and to a certain extent, away from the muscles, the fact is that an
episode of drowning caused by swimming on a full stomach has never been
documented. Neither the American Academy of Pediatrics nor the American Red Cross makes any specific recommendations
about waiting any amount of time after eating before taking a swim. There's a
theoretical possibility that one could develop a cramp while swimming with a
full stomach, but a person swimming in a pool or controlled swimming area
could easily exit the water
if this happens. As with any exercise after eating, swimming right after a
big meal might be uncomfortable, but it won't cause you to drown.
Top Drowning Terms
dry drowning,
secondary drowning,
statistics,
victim,
pool,
first aid,
prevention,
near
What is drowning?
According to the World Health Organization, "Drowning is the process of experiencing respiratory impairment from
submersion/immersion in liquid." The possible outcomes of drowning are
classified as death, morbidity (the development of disability or injury), and no
morbidity.
This relatively simple definition was agreed upon at the 2002 World Congress
of Drowning held in Amsterdam. Prior to that meeting, some definitions and
classifications of drowning were not necessarily well defined, and their
meanings were subject to a variety of interpretations by different countries and
health organizations. While some people still try to sort drowning events into
categories (for example wet vs. dry, primary vs. secondary, fatal vs. non-fatal),
these terms may or may not adequately describe a patient's situation, the
effects of drowning on their body, or the potential outcome.
Drowning is a common cause of death and disability. In 2002 over
400,000 (worldwide) people died from drowning; of the 400,000 deaths, 129,000
were in China. In the
US it is the third most common cause of accidental death, with 3,500 deaths per
year, or 10 per day. Twenty-five percent of the victims are children aged 14 and
younger.
The death rate from drowning does not reflect the potential morbidity
(disability) due to brain injury for those who survive a drowning episode.
Next: What happens during drowning? »
Specialty RSS
Interactive Slideshows