Parents Warned About Dry Drowning Risks

In the past two days there has been two reports of Dry Drowning cases with very sad endings and parents with child care providers are warned to be watchful for the risks of dry drowning particularly during summer when unfortunately drowning cases are on the rise.

There is disturbing story about an unusual drowning case in South Carolina. A 10-year old child drowned near Charleston last weekend. Experts say that about 10 to 15 percent of drowning victims experience what is called "dry drowning," caused by an involuntary laryngospasm reflex. There is another report of Dry Drowning coming from Missouri.

"In medical terms, drowning is death by suffocation from submersion. In the aquatics profession we look to the national training agencies for a definition. The YMCA of the United States defines drowning as "asphyxiation due to blockage of the trachea, usually by water, causing respiratory arrest." The central idea is that drowning is a respiratory emergency caused by a fluid that blocks the breathing passage in one of two ways, wet drownings and dry drownings. In wet drownings, there is water in the victim's lungs that limit the body's ability to exchange gases and provide oxygen to the blood. It is also possible that water can be drawn into the bloodstream through the lung's alveoli, the tiny sacs that exchange gases in the small blood vessels of the lungs. This dilution can cause an electrolyte imbalance in the body which can bring on fibrillation in the heart, according to the YMCA," writes Ron Shaw from Northern Illinois University Libraries.

He goes on writing that "Dry drownings are rare, accounting for at most 20 percent of all cases. One of the medical examiners I spoke with said that he had never encountered one. For a lifeguard there is little difference in the water rescue skills required for either case, but there may be some differences in the resuscitation of the victim."

Below are presented instructions on How to Determine a Dry Drowning with some tips and warnings provided by eHow.

Step 1: Determine whether the victim entered a body of water forcefully from a high diving board or slid down a long steep slide. These two activities have been associated with dry drowning. The victim involuntarily suffocates by holding his breath or experiencing a muscle spasm of the larynx.

Step 2: Decide if it's possible the victim's epiglottis was hit forcefully with droplets of water. This causes the flap to spasm and close over the windpipe. Once it is closed, water and air are unable to enter the lungs.

Step 3: Notice whether someone is choking or gagging while they are in or around water. It may be an indication that water has hit the epiglottis and caused spasms. This can happen in the water or after leaving the water and usually occurs 6 to 10 minutes after the water hits the epiglottis.

Step 4: Examine a dry drowning victim, and it may reveal water in the stomach but not in the lungs. Water in the lungs indicates the victim was alive before submersion, but the absence of water indicates dry drowning or death before drowning.

Tips & Warnings About Dry Drowning

• The larynx is located at the top of the trachea and consists of muscle, cartilage and the vocal cords. The epiglottis is the flap of cartilage at the base of the tongue, which covers the trachea (windpipe). This flap prevents food and liquids from entering the lungs through the trachea.

• The treatment remains the same for all types of drowning, which is to oxygenate the lungs and get breathing started as soon as possible.