Barotrauma

Barotrauma is physical damage to body tissues caused by a difference in pressure between a gas space inside, or in contact with, the body and the surrounding gas or liquid. The initial damage is usually due to over-stretching of the tissues in tension or shear, either directly by expansion of the gas in the closed space or by a pressure difference transmitted through the tissue. Tissue rupture may be complicated by gas entering the local tissue or circulation through the initial trauma site, which can block circulation at distant sites or interfere with an organ's normal function, and barotrauma can occur during both compression and decompression events.