is it possible for my friend with burst ear drums to get into diving?
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is it possible for my friend with burst ear drums to get into diving?
I have a friend that burst her ear drums a few years ago,she has always wanted to get into diving but was told that she cant pass the 25'. i am wondering if there are any divers here with a similiar problems, or if any one dives with someone that has ear issues,,i have heard tell of a special mask that will help her get into the water,. if anyone has any info on how she might be able or who makes any special equipment so she could get into diving it would be greatly apreciated.
Thank you for your time
As being able to equalize the ears is very important to prevent any further injury, I would say that decision would best be made by either your friend's doctor a doctor that is well versed in diving medicine. She might give DAN (Diver's Alert Network) a call & see if there is a doctor trainied in diving medicine that could examine your friend & give an opinion. I would not suggest anything mechanical- ear plugs, special masks & such without the direction of a medical professional.
If her ear drums have healed, she may get into diving without problems. It all depends if she can equalize. But as said above, the most important aspect is to get checked out by an ENT who understands diving. This is very important - not all ENTs do. If the ear drums have NOT healed, then no way.
Granted, the PADI Student Folder easiest to reach is a few years old but, the two Medical Questionnaire questions concerning ears are;
Ear disease or surgery, hearing loss or problems with balance?
and
Recurring ear problems?
If the answer to those two Q's is no, the only Q is can the ears be equalized the way a typical beginning diver needs to equalize them; no Dr. necessary.
I have had 4 eardrum perforations; all from cliff diving.
The second one happened just minutes after the 90 day doctor's appointment that "cleared me" as fully healed; to which I celebrated by getting back on the horse that threw me, and perforated the ear again.
The third happened while working as a cliff diver, and the doctor held me out of work for two weeks. The fourth one was also during work, but I did not go to the doctor. I followed previous cleaning and antibiotic treatment and continued to work as a cliff diver, with a wax plug in my ear; it healed in 10 days.
For the last two, my weekend job was Scuba Instructor, and I took a couple weekends off each time. I also free dive frequently, before, in between and after all those perforations. I went through a nearly zero to past hero scuba instructor factory regime without a Doctor's clearance on my two previous ear perforations.
If one can clear their ears, prior perforations seem to be no issue to me.
Your eardrums are effected by the difference in pressure between the inside and outside of your ears. The absolute depth has no relation to the force on your eardrums. For someone with previous perforations, it may be easier for the eardrum to perforate again, but this would be because of infrequent or forceful equalizations. It could happen in 10 ft of water. Anybody's eardum would burst if unequalized at 25 ft of water.
Your eardrums are effected by the difference in pressure between the inside and outside of your ears. The absolute depth has no relation to the force on your eardrums. For someone with previous perforations, it may be easier for the eardrum to perforate again, but this would be because of infrequent or forceful equalizations. It could happen in 10 ft of water. Anybody's eardum would burst if unequalized at 25 ft of water.
Even if you had identified yourself as an ENT Specialist MD, In order to even half believe you I would require links to published studies verifying nearly every absolute statement you have made here.
The most knowledgeable ear doc I've spoken to is not an ear doc; just a GP at a Haleiwa clinic. He sees serious watermen and women on a regular basis, including many famous big wave surfers, and is an experienced waterman in his own right.
The most common North Shore Oahu ear perforations are from water "slapping" the ear drum, at the surface, not at depth. It is likely that people who have had more than one "slapping" perforation have a hammer (malleus) that is positioned &/or shaped in a way that predispositions them to easier slapping perforations.
When I cliff dive higher than 40 feet, I prefer to have a wax plug in my right ear. I have never had an issue with my left ear. It is likely the slap has something to do with the positioning of my right hand and head when entering the water, but my hammer position is also likely problematic.
Frequent swimmer's ear infections can also cause weakness to the ear drum, but mostly from the wrong self treatment. Over drying with rubbing alcohol and overuse of hydrogen peroxide for ear wax removal and sanitation do not make the ear drum all it can be.
If we look at bone breakage, I believe the data shows that a healed fracture is less likely to break again than the adjacent never broken before bone. I would like to see data on ear drum scar tissue strength vs non scarred adjacent ear drum tissue strength.
IMHO, I think it highly likely that more than just a few people often go to at least 25 foot deep pressure, very quickly, without equalizing their ears and do not rupture. It is surely painful, as the pressure of the water pushes the ear drum against the hammer, but I find it pretty unlikely that everyone's ear drum would burst, or there would be way more perforations being treated at the clicic in Haleiwa.
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Originally Posted by windapp
