TY - JOUR T1 - Oxygen, the lung and the diver: friends and foes? JF - European Respiratory Review JO - EUROPEAN RESPIRATORY REVIEW SP - 496 LP - 505 DO - 10.1183/16000617.0049-2016 VL - 25 IS - 142 AU - Pieter-Jan A.M. van Ooij AU - Peter J. Sterk AU - Robert A. van Hulst Y1 - 2016/12/01 UR - http://err.ersjournals.com/content/25/142/496.abstract N2 - Worldwide, the number of professional and sports divers is increasing. Most of them breathe diving gases with a raised partial pressure of oxygen (PO2). However, if the PO2 is between 50 and 300 kPa (375–2250 mmHg) (hyperoxia), pathological pulmonary changes can develop, known as pulmonary oxygen toxicity (POT). Although in its acute phase, POT is reversible, it can ultimately lead to non-reversible pathological changes. Therefore, it is important to monitor these divers to prevent them from sustaining irreversible lesions.This review summarises the pulmonary pathophysiological effects when breathing oxygen with a PO2 of 50–300 kPa (375–2250 mmHg). We describe the role and the limitations of lung function testing in monitoring the onset and development of POT, and discuss new techniques in respiratory medicine as potential markers in the early development of POT in divers.To prevent the early development of pulmonary oxygen toxicity divers must be properly monitored http://ow.ly/RVJL301fySb ER -