diving and hearing

[topflowerrubberforever]

Hello everyone..

im a newbie diver.. i havent logged more that 16 17 dives.. but i have noticed that my left ear has been going down lately.. does diving affect your hearing?? i equalize with no problems at all. i asked my ENT doctor and she said it could be.. but i havent logged so many dives.. i think it's because i have spent too much time with headphones on my ears. anyone relate to this?? anyone know what to do??

Thanks

Jay

 

[Duane S.]

The general consensus is that diving/hyperbaric exposure causes long term hearing loss. Usually it is due to repeated exposure over long periods of time, unless of course you are lucky enough to rupture your oval or round windows, from not equalizing early and often, or equalizing too forcefully. I think I may have read an article about this on DAN's website or perhaps on scubadoc.com.

It's probably the loud music.