Diving with a vent tube in ear??

[9supratt4]

I have a friend who has always wanted to dive and now that I am certified and diving he is extremely jealous!! The problem is that one of his ears has a permanent tube in it. His Eustachian tube instead of going from the ear straight down into the throat, has a "notch" in it where his tube will not drain correctly and he had major ear infections as a child, hence the permanent tube.

He recently went to see a dive ENT who told him that he could not dive with a tube in his ear. He did ask the Dr. about using the Doc's Pro Plugs, and the Dr. basically said that he can't say that yes they will work because the correct answer is he shouldn't be diving with a tube.

What does everyone else think?? Anyone have experience with these ProPlugs?? Is he attempting to do something that he really shouldn't be doing?? Or can this work??

I told him to fill his ear with concrete since he can't hear through it anyway....lol.

 

[vladimir]

If an ENT told me not to dive with an ear tube, I wouldn't dive with an ear tube. What input are you likely to get here that would make you ignore that advice?

 

[rockjock3]

I have a friend who has always wanted to dive and now that I am certified and diving he is extremely jealous!! The problem is that one of his ears has a permanent tube in it. His Eustachian tube instead of going from the ear straight down into the throat, has a "notch" in it where his tube will not drain correctly and he had major ear infections as a child, hence the permanent tube.

He recently went to see a dive ENT who told him that he could not dive with a tube in his ear. He did ask the Dr. about using the Doc's Pro Plugs, and the Dr. basically said that he can't say that yes they will work because the correct answer is he shouldn't be diving with a tube.

What does everyone else think?? Anyone have experience with these ProPlugs?? Is he attempting to do something that he really shouldn't be doing?? Or can this work??

I told him to fill his ear with concrete since he can't hear through it anyway....lol.

Seeing as the ENT may/may not have any dive knowledge or even be a diver, yet alone trained in dive medicine I would get a second opinion. I have heard that you shouldn't dive with ear tubes, but there might be conditions on that. I would try be be seen by an actual dive doctor. Also, you can call DAN to see what their input is on the subject.

 

[mermaidmd]

I know this might not be quite what you were looking for, but my DH has the same issue. How we solved it is that he joins me only on dives where my maximum depth is limited to about 15-20 feet, and only when the surface conditions are good. He then stays up in the 2-foot range and looks down at me (and my other dive buddy, DS) on the bottom. It's more like glorified snorkeling, really, but he's in his SCUBA gear and he is in the water and we get to say we have dived together yet another day.
In our eagerness and excitement to see "how deep did we go today?", we sometimes overlook all the amazing sights that exist in relatively shallow water. Only five feet from shore yesterday, I spied three gorgeous lobsters, a ton of crabs and a very shy fish, as yet to be identified. The starfish have moved a bit deeper, but just watching two crabs vie for the premium rockcondo was entertaining for ten full minutes!
It's possible to make the best of a bad situation, just apply good sense and solid logic, and then think outside the bubble! good luck....oh, and by the way: probably to keep bouyancy manageable, BOTH ears should have equal amounts of concrete!!

 

[pasley]

NOT A DOCTOR, OPINION ONLY
Two issues indicate no diving:
1.

Eustachian tube instead of going from the ear straight down into the throat, has a "notch" in it where his tube will not drain correctly.

Diving is Contra-indicated as he would have major challenges clearing and potential for squeeze or reverse squeeze if the tube were removed. With the tube you would run the risk of water in the inner ear and infection. Not worth the risk.
2.

Proplugs prevent water from entering the ear down to 20 feet in depth. Once the diver enters greater depths, water will be allowed into the ear for equalization. http://www.proplugs.com/scubadiving.shtml

The plugs will only potentially work on dives of less than 20 feet. They do not keep the ear dry and would admit water through the tube into the inner ear at depths in excess of 20 feet. Note I said potentially as this assumes 5 things; the plugs fit correctly; were inserted correctly; they function correctly; they keep the ear dry to 20 feet; the diver does not exceed 20 feet. That is too much assumption in my book.

Sorry, but sometimes the correct answer is that you should not dive.

 

[9supratt4]

That's where i'm at as well. No he shouldn't be diving, but it's the only thing he talks about and has been a dream of his for a long time!! So I figured i'd try to get some more information for him, but it's not looking too promising.

The "notch" in his eustachian tube is like a gully...where fluids build up because it was not able to drain properly, hence the permanent tube.

Has anyone ever heard of this condition?? Is there a surgical fix for it??

 

[SelkieDVM]

Try posting this in the Diving Medicine forum. I know there is at least one ENT that is a member here. Personally, I would get an opinion from a doc with some diving knowledge. Also, the suggestion to try DAN is a good one. Many doctors will take the conservative approach and recommend against something something if they aren't well versed in it. The answer may remain the same, but if your friend is really motivated, what harm is there in a second opinion?

 

[9supratt4]

Try posting this in the Diving Medicine forum. I know there is at least one ENT that is a member here. Personally, I would get an opinion from a doc with some diving knowledge. Also, the suggestion to try DAN is a good one. Many doctors will take the conservative approach and recommend against something something if they aren't well versed in it. The answer may remain the same, but if your friend is really motivated, what harm is there in a second opinion?

He did go to a dive ENT that I got from DAN. But I will post it in there too. I didn't see that section at first.

Thanks everyone!! He just really wants to dive and hates it when he asks me to hang out on a Saturday and I tell him i'm going diving!!!

 

[SelkieDVM]

Oh sorry, missed that. Good luck to him.

 

[John C. Ratliff]

Okay, I have to say something here. First, the problem is getting water into the middle ear, not clearing the ear. The pressures will be equalized because of the hole in the ear drum. So the reason diving is contraindicated is because of the risk of middle ear infection, not because of an equalization problem. Then the question becomes, how do we keep the water out while still allowing the pressure to be ambient (the same as the water around the diver). Well, that problem has been solved in two different ways. The first is a hood, called the Scuba Queen, which provides an ear cup with equalizing tubes to the regulator second stage.

SCUBA Queen Air Hood,Large

The single tube needs to be plugged into a drilled hole in the second stage of the regulator. This allows air at the same pressure as the surrounding air (ambient pressure) to enter the air space around the ear. The pressure is then equalized by the air which goes through the tube. This was originally used in double-hose regulators, where the second stage is always dry, so if it is used in a current single hose regulator, care must be taken to keep the second stage dry, but with discipline this can be done.

The second is an ear-equalization dive mask which has ear cups attached to the mask band, and equalization tubes which go to the mask. Equalization in the ear cups occurs automatically as the diver equalizes the pressure in the mask.

IST Pro ear scuba diving divers mask - black Silicone - Pro Ear Mask - Compare Prices and Buy at PriceGrabber

The explanation on the above website is a bit off, so ignore the thought that because the ear cup is dry and warm, you don't need to worry about equalization--if your ear drum (tympanic membrane) is intact, you must equalize as normal. But for those with tubes in their ear(s), the ear canal equalizes automatically because of the hole. If only one ear has the tube, then the other needs to be equalized in the same manner as anyone else would do it.

Now, with this in mind, re-contact the ENT physician and explain these two innovations to him/her, and ask whether there is any other problem, other than water getting into the middle ear, that is causing the doctor to say diving is contraindicated. If not, get one of these products and try it out. I hear that they work quite well.

One other thought--don't even try these plugs discussed above. Vented plugs would allow water to enter the ear canal, and therefore allow it into the middle ear. The above two innovations are the only ones that may work to my knowledge in this case. Also, obviously, concrete has its problems (This last thought comes from the medical forum on the same subject.)


SeaRat