Health concern, alergies and nasal congestion

[learn2turn]

Hi,

I'm one of those considering maybe taking a course next year. I'll intro this question by saying Yes, I will take to my Dr. this fall at my annual checkup, and ask about this issue.

I have moderate algeries and tend to have a little bit of a stuffy nose much of the time. I don't normally have a cough at all. Years ago, when I smoked (I quit over ten years ago), when a number of irritants like dog, cat, etc. combined, I'd get a bit tight in the chest. Occasionally I'd use an inhaler. I've never had a full-blown asthma attack or anything like that ever. And this was years ago as I said.

So, I suspose my question is what should I ask my Dr?

Also, with regard to the mild nasal congestion, is this a concern?

Does anyone who is diving now who has mild alergies be able to tell me how they manage it?

 

[carolrose]

I have allergies and I dive. I called DAN (www.diversalertnetwork.com) and got a recommendation for a dive doc in my area and went to him and went over my whole medical history. He cleared me to dive, and I've been doing so for almost a year now. Nasal congestion would be a concern because you could injure your ears/sinuses if you can't clear, but an ENT doctor with knowledge of diving can let you know in your specific case how much of a problem this might be for you. Mine recommends washing my sinuses out with a saline solution a couple of times a day which feels weird at first, but works amazingly well. I've pretty much stopped taking allergy meds and now just do this and use a saline nasal spray as well. This keeps the congestion away and I'm not taking any meds that might have side effects for diving. The absolute best thing you can do is talk to a doctor who knows how these things interact with diving (most docs know nothing about diving and will just say don't do it). DAN is your buddy in this case!!

 

[wcl]

Hi,

I have had somewhat chronic mild nasal congestion (probably developing more allergies over time) for years.

Thought it might be a problem diving when I started, but it has turned out not to be.

As long as you can clear, in fact, I have found diving to be really good for my sinuses: You pressurize them to a few ATA going down, and when you come up they blow all the accumulated goop out ... and my sinuses feel WONDERFUL after diving.

I just need to dive more, I guess ;-).

The key: If you can't clear, don't descend; and go slow at first to be sure you know how your ears and sinuses react.


Cheers,
W

 

[underwasser bolt]

i have chronic nasal congestion; doc cured it years ago, but the cure was worse than the congestion, so i decided to live with it. no problems diving. i also saline rinse and if i have a severe case i may use afrin type drugs from time to time. i too find when i come up from depth all the junk just flows out due to pressure swing. i have know problems clearing.

 

[Paco]

I've always had sinus (congestion) problems, but happily, they only bother me on the surface; I've had no sinus related problems with 500+ dives. However, everyone is different and the advice of a god ENT specialist, especially one with diving knowledge would be great.

Good advice from caroln. Have DAN recommend a good Doc to check you out.

 

[RoadRacer1978]

I also have allergies and have had no problems clearing. I have found that when I leave and go to a dive destination my allergies actually get better. I usually use a nasal spray most of the time just to breathe, but when I am out somewhere diving my allergies get better and haven't had to use it when I am away diving. Everyone is different and can't say it will work for you, so I would deffinately get checked out by a DR, and even better an ENT. If he clears you and you have no problems equalizing then great. If you find that you cannot equalize, then don't force it. If you try to keep submerging it will cause more problems than you want. So get checked and try it out. Everyone is different and some people as you can see are able to dive with allergies, so you are not automatically banned from diving just because you have allergies. Hope the replies help and hope you can dive. Let us know how it works out for you.

 

[learn2turn]

.... I have found diving to be really good for my sinuses: You pressurize them to a few ATA going down, and when you come up they blow all the accumulated goop out ... and my sinuses feel WONDERFUL after diving.

Gee, that reminds me of riding a high-speed quad from 2000' to 4000'. I love that feeling, really clears things up.

 

[Aelvin]

i have nasal congestion everyday, but thats on surface only... surprisingly i have no congestion problem what so ever underwater..

 

[spectrum]

This is not meant to be medical advice. Have your physician weigh in on this. However it's highly likely that you are good to go so relax. If your physician is not really dive savvy I encourage you contact DAN for an informed opinion. Also go to the website and read up on the topic.

Dive air is delightfully clean and will be a respite from summertime allergies. I do use Flo-Nase to keep myself clear but in all honesty I think it's value to me is debatable. My allergies do seem to have backed off since taking up diving, go figure.

If your use of the inhaler is linked to the known irritants you are probably off the hook. Even asthma as long as it's not cold or exertion induced is usually not a contra indicator to diving as long as it's controlled.

My wife has mild allergy induced asthma and was cleared to dive. She uses her inhaler en route to the dive site just she knows she's going under clear and has never had an issue in over 100 dives.

Pete

 

[TSandM]

Nasal congestion is an issue if it impedes clearing the ears, or equalizing the sinuses. You really won't know if it's going to be an issue until you try it. The good news is that, if it's due to allergies, there are various approaches to dealing with it, including antihistamines, nasal steroids, or desensitization shots.

The bronchospasm is a little more concerning, because symptomatic asthma is a contraindication to diving. But if you are worried about it, your doctor can refer you for pulmonary function testing, which will determine if your lung function is normal, and if there is bronchospasm present, and if it is responsive to medications. If you have not had any symptoms for years, it is unlikely you would even require this testing, but other pieces of history, such as exercise tolerance, presence or absence of cough, etc., would come into play as well.

Hope this is helpful.