Mystery Case: White matter lesion related to decompression sickness following extreme breath-hold diving

A 39-year-old man developed transient expressive aphasia and headache following extreme breath-hold diving. He had performed around 30 breath-hold dives, lasting approximately 2 minutes, 30 meters deep, for 5 hours, with short surface intervals. Brain MRI (figure, A–C) revealed a left frontal white matter lesion, without restricted diffusion, contrast enhancement, or mass effect.