Joseph Dituri (born 8 December 1967) is an American biomedical researcher, and former Naval Commander.[1][2] Also known as "Dr. Deep Sea".,[3][4][5][6] his research includes life support equipment design, high carbon dioxide environments, hypobaric medicine, and traumatic brain injury. He has made contributions in the field as a researcher, speaker, lecturer, and writer, including Exploration and Mixed Gas Diving Encyclopedia: The Tao of Survival Underwater.[7]
In 1985, Dituri enlisted in the United States Navy.[11] He consistently served aboard naval vessels and at shore stations, engaging in tasks such as hyperbaric system maintenance, saturation diving, search and rescue operations, and ship repair.[1][11][12][13][10] In 1995, he was commissioned into the Special Operations Officer pipeline and after serving three diving tours, he became the Engineering Duty Officer.[11]
Upon completing his M.S. in 2006,[1] he assumed the role of Officer-in-Charge at the Deep Submergence Unit (DSU) Diving Systems Detachment (DSD).[11] Under his leadership, DSD certified the 2,000 feet sea water Atmospheric Diving System for deployment across the fleet.[11] Following the implementation and initial testing phase, Commander Dituri's team introduced the Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System into Naval service, deploying it on two international engagements.[11]
His final position in the United States Navy was in the Research Development and Acquisition Center – Maritime Systems at Special Operations Command.[11] He served as the Chief Engineer, Program Manager for Undersea Systems Technical and Certification Program, as well as Deputy Program Manager for Combat Craft.[11] After 28 years of active service, Dituri retired in 2013.[14]
Dituri is a biomedical researcher in the field of life support equipment design, high carbon dioxide environments, hypobaric medicine, and traumatic brain injury.[1][2] During his career, he has been a contributing author, co-author, and author in publications, books, and articles including: Secrets in Depth,[15]Hyperbaric Medicine Practice,[16]“Over The Counter” Remedy For DCIs,[17]My Daddy Wears a Different Kind of Suit to Work,[18] and more.
Dituri is a biomedical engineering lecturer at the University of South Florida[5][1] and instructor of hyperbaric medicine. He serves as a Director of the International Board of Undersea Medicine (IBUM).[2][19]
Dituri spent 100 days living underwater at the Jules' Undersea Lodge in Key Largo, Florida.[2] During his stay, Dituri earned a spot in the Guinness World Records for the longest time spent living underwater in a fixed habitat.[20][3][21][6]
Dituri was granted a United States Patent for a device and system he designed during his Ph.D. dissertation on systems and methods for monitoring heart rate variability.[22] The processing device monitors heart beat data, and executes a heart rate variability program to detect physiological distress, essential in the prevention of hypercapnia, hyperoxia, and decompressive stress[23]
^Mount, Patti; Mount, Tom; Dituri, Joseph (August 2008). Exploration and Mixed Gas Diving Encyclopedia: The Tao of Survival Underwater. International Association of Nitrox & Technical Divers. ISBN9780915539109.
^Defense Dept. – U.S. Navy – Naval Sea Systems Command. United States Navy Diving Manual. 4th Edition (4 ed.). Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Claitor’s Law Books and Publishing. 1999. p. 1042.
^Dituri, Joseph (April 29, 2022). Secrets in Depth. Viking Stone Press. ISBN9798985366433.
^Whelan, Harry; Kindwall, Eric (2017). Hyperbaric Medicine Practice (4th ed.). Best Publishing Company. pp. 975–993, 997–1014, 1107–1133. ISBN978-1947239005.
^Dituri, Joseph (October 31, 2023). "United States Patent". United States Patent and Trademark Office.
^Dituri, Joseph; Siddiqi, Farhan; Frisina, Robert (June 2019). "Real-time heart rate variability analysis as a means of hypercapnia detection". Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine. 46 (4): 503–507. doi:10.22462/06.08.2019.12. PMID31509906. S2CID202562812.