Ear trouble after first dives

[Moonfish17]

Thanks for the advice guys. Saw the doctor today. He said there's a lot of blood in my ears but that it should clear up in its own time. Feel better for getting it checked! He said that he's heard of middle ear barotrauma but this is the first time he's actually seen it. So a good day for him! Going to be much more careful with my equalising next time.

 

[archer1960]

I have found now that the Valsalva maneuver along with swallowing at the same time works best for me. It's always my left ear too that's harder to equalize but pops easily with that technique i just mentioned. I was reading also to equalize very often after submerging. Every two feet was advised in one article.

I just tried that here at my desk, and it seems to work great!

 

[sealark]

I would go see a doctor that dives. From what you just said.

 

[nathalievdw]

Hello, here is my story. I'm a newly certified diver. During my OW certification dives recently I've got middle ear barotrauma on both sides and perforated tympanic membrane on the left. On both sides my middle ear cavities were flooded with blood/water. The surprise for me was that I never experienced big problems while equalising and no pain during or after the dives. So I just kept on diving for days (8 dives over 4 days in total - were my first dives, no experience) until I started to have bleeding nose/ears when I came up, and I started to experience serious hearing loss and buzzing.

I went to see a local ENT doctor after the diving and now again at home 2-3 weeks later for a check. The 1st ENT didn’t advise against diving in the future, he just said it first had to heal and then I had to work on my equalising techniques (which I’ve been doing and found better techniques now). The 2nd ENT advised against diving now. My left ear drum was healed, but got a lot of scar tissue from childhood inner ear infections. When I equalise on the surface, there is a part that clearly bulges out and looks very thin. On top of that, my eustachian tubes seems very narrow. The combination of these 2 will most probably make my ear drum rupture again next time according to her, and can cause the dizziness again which I experienced last time (only minor) and is a risk.
I would like to know if there are still options (special ear protection, surgery ?) for me as I really would like to continue diving.


Thanks a lot for sharing any useful experiences or advice.

 

[Neilwood]

Hello, here is my story. I'm a newly certified diver. During my OW certification dives recently I've got middle ear barotrauma on both sides and perforated tympanic membrane on the left. On both sides my middle ear cavities were flooded with blood/water. The surprise for me was that I never experienced big problems while equalising and no pain during or after the dives. So I just kept on diving for days (8 dives over 4 days in total - were my first dives, no experience) until I started to have bleeding nose/ears when I came up, and I started to experience serious hearing loss and buzzing.

I went to see a local ENT doctor after the diving and now again at home 2-3 weeks later for a check. The 1st ENT didn’t advise against diving in the future, he just said it first had to heal and then I had to work on my equalising techniques (which I’ve been doing and found better techniques now). The 2nd ENT advised against diving now. My left ear drum was healed, but got a lot of scar tissue from childhood inner ear infections. When I equalise on the surface, there is a part that clearly bulges out and looks very thin. On top of that, my eustachian tubes seems very narrow. The combination of these 2 will most probably make my ear drum rupture again next time according to her, and can cause the dizziness again which I experienced last time (only minor) and is a risk.
I would like to know if there are still options (special ear protection, surgery ?) for me as I really would like to continue diving.


Thanks a lot for sharing any useful experiences or advice.

I would suggest a proper investigation by an ENT specialist versed in diving and its particular issues. I would imagine DAN (Scuba Diver Accident Insurance — Insurance for Scuba — DAN | Divers Alert Network) would be able to provide a relevant specialist

 

[nathalievdw]

Thanks Neilwood.

My friends also suggested DAN. I contacted them, but I'm not a member (yet). Feeling hesitant now to pay for an insurance since I've just heard I can't dive anymore.
Anyway, I hope they are still willing to help me with some information.

Thank you for your reply !