Ear Beer

[Manatee Diver]

True, but he said he has "Fluid in tube behind ear drum," and I don't know of any treatment for that other than letting the body deal with it in time.

Yeah, that is what I've heard, but I'm not a doctor. Simply linking the prophylactic of ear beer vs the actual treatment.

 

[Scubagolf]

1/3 isopropyl alcohol
1/3 white vinegar
1/3 distilled water

I use this in each ear after every dive to prevent outer ear infections (swimmers ear.)

 

[Mr. Sunday]

Here is an article from DAN on Ear Beer with a recipe.

More On Swimmers Ear — DAN | Divers Alert Network — Medical Dive Article

 

[almostDIR]

I had a middle ear barotrauma last year, the ENT prescribed steroids (pretty heavy doses of Prednisolon) right away and it went away pretty quickly like in one or two weeks. as I have understood it can also heal spontaneously but for me the steroids definitely helped. Your ENT should know best what works for your case

 

[pfirejack]

There was a mention of steroids being prescribed if not cleared up by next visit.
Thanks again for all the replys.

 

[ggunn]

Long story short having trouble with left ear. Fluid in tube behind ear drum. Dr says wait 1 week then return.
Today in dive shop someone mentioned ear beer. Before I could get more info the person left.
Can anyone enlighten me on ear beer.

Am sorry for posting here but this is my go to.

If it were me, I'd not dive again until the condition is remedied, and as others have said, Swim Ear and the like are not treatments for what you have. IANAD, but I wouldn't want to risk turning a temporary condition into a permanent one.

 

[doctormike]

Long story short having trouble with left ear. Fluid in tube behind ear drum. Dr says wait 1 week then return.
Today in dive shop someone mentioned ear beer. Before I could get more info the person left.
Can anyone enlighten me on ear beer.

Am sorry for posting here but this is my go to.

Hi, thanks for posting!

This is a very common point of confusion. Although I don't know exactly what is going on in your ear, "fluid behind the ear drum" in the context of scuba diving generally refers to middle ear barotrauma. "Ear beer" is a topical drop usually made of rubbing alcohol with a small amount of white vinegar and glycerine, which is used to treat outer ear infections (swimmer's ear).

Those two conditions have nothing to do with each other. While they both can cause ear pain and hearing issues, they are caused by different processes and treated differently.

Here is my article on the topic.

 

[Morne Christou]

Here is a great video on ear problems and diving.

 

[gbf]

50/50 4-5% vinegar and isopropyl alcohol, no glycerine. 5 minutes each ear post dive, don't cheat. Been doing it for many years with no external ear problems for me and my family. In fact, we start smelling like salad a couple days before diving.

From Dan:

More On Swimmers Ear — DAN | Divers Alert Network — Medical Dive Article

Can You Prevent Otitis Externa, or Swimmers Ear? — DAN | Divers Alert Network — Medical Dive Article

The goal is to create an acidic environment that retards bacterial growth = vinegar

and to dry the ear canal = alcohol. Not a fix, a preventative.

You can get Dr. Jones' original report for $7 if you're really, really interested.

Years ago I read the navy report. As I remember the finding was alcohol + vinegar was as effective as Otic Domeboro, but they wanted a commercial solution, not a roll-your-own.

 

[jpm4osu]

Several years ago I had the same problem. Mine was actually blood and was caused when clearing while diving. Also had a little nose bleed. Reason for the occurrence was I was taking aspirin for a hurting tooth and this caused my blood vessels to be easier to rupture. I did not go to the doctor while on the trip, but when I returned to the states. I had 3 hour plane ride and I did not have any issues with pain on the flight. I am not going to weigh in how intelligent this was on my part, just saying I was ok on the plane.

Leaves the question is this water behind the eardrum? If it is water then it sounds like a ruptured ear drum and that will be extremely painful on the plane.