Postdoctoral Fellowship for Dr. Lindholm, Underwater Physiology and Medicine

The objective of this Postdoctoral fellowship was to provide education to extend their training to embarking on an independent research. Two Postdoctoral Fellows were trained. Important safety issues of breath-holding and limitations to diver performance were studied. Two studies showed the potential for increased risk of loss of consciousness LOC during breath-holing when carbohydrate stores were reduced by either dietary restriction or exercise without proper replenishment of glucose and glycogen. In addition, it was shown that the risk of LOS is grater in experienced breath-hold divers due to increased CO2 tolerance. The increased risk of LOC could be prevented by a high carbohydrate drink prior to diving. In another series of studies it was shown that there are respiratory limitations to sustained exercise performance in divers in air and during surface and at depth 120 fsw swimming, and that these limitations could be eliminated by specific training of the respiratory muscles RMT. RMT minimized respiratory muscle fatigue and normalized the ventilatory response to increasing CO2 CO2 sensitivity and blood CO2 in CO2.