Assessment of Headache Incidence During SURVIVEX 2004

The extent to which headaches occur among submariners and impact their performance is unknown. The objective of this survey was to evaluate headaches as an issue of concern noted during SURVIVEX 2004, a disabled submarine survival exercise conducted aboard USS SALT LAKE CITY. For four days, the subjects were exposed to carbon dioxide levels above 1.5% and oxygen levels of below 19%. Of the 73 respondents, 47.9% of the subjects experienced a headache during the exercise, with 77.1% describing the pain as severe. The incidence of headache among SURVIVEX subjects needs to be considered in disabled submarine scenario planning. The original document contains color images. WU50404, WU50507.