[Acute venous stasis in the area of the head after bungee-jumping. A report of 2 cases].

Jumping from bridges or cranes while secured by an elastic rope is called bungee jumping, and it is an increasingly popular sport. We report on two bungee jumpers who suffered from symptoms of acute venous stasis in the head. These included skin edema, purpura-like bleeding in the face and the conjunctiva, dizziness, confusion and, in one case, transient visual problems. With increasing diameter and decreasing elasticity of the rope the deceleration with the head foremost leads to temporary engorgement of blood vessels entailed by capillary leaking. Nearly a century ago, Perthes reported similar symptoms of acute venous stasis in the head as a result of thoracic compression.