Advice/your experience please? - Unhealed burst eardrum problem

[dubheart]

Hi my wife burst her eardrum while diving 2 years ago.
While it healed -she was left with a small hole in the eardrum so can not dive at the moment. She's met a surgeon re the operation to fix it - but is worried about increasing hearing loss if it goes wrong? and also whether the operation can survive the effects of diving? _ so anyone got any experience of the operation and whether it worked and you're back diving or not. we are mid 50s - so there's some concern that a younger person might heal faster/stronger etc?

Also i understand theres a mask called proear 2000? which i understand can keep your ear watertight? - if so - does this still work if you get your mask flooding?
many thanks for any thoughts/experiences
thanks
Liam

 

[Rogersea]

I think you would get better information if you moved your question to the Marine Science and Physiology . Good luck!

 

[gert7to3]

I have had two tympanoplsties. Tympanoplasty is a fairly easy operation to undergo and is quite effective. Especially if the hole in your wife's eardrum is fairly small. As to whether it would improve her hearing, that depends on too many factors to offer any opinion here. The chief advantage, diving not withstanding, is that it would seal her middle ear.

I have also been using a Pro Ear Mask for years. Here's a discussion from the Diving Medicine forum:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/diving-medicine/414829-ear-trauma-15-metres-never-dive-again-3.html

If one were to flood their mask using a Pro Ear mask, the ear cups could flood as well. Use of a Doc's Pro Plug with a Pro Ear mask would offer additional protection. IMO your wife needs to figure out why she ruptured her eardrum in the first place.

 

[doctormike]

IMO your wife needs to figure out why she ruptured her eardrum in the first place.

Thats a good point! If it was from external trauma (someone or something punching a hole in the eardrum) then it should heal well after tympanoplasty. If it was because she was having problems equalizing in the first place, then the graft might not heal that well.

Tympanoplasty is a fairly straightforward operation that any experienced ear surgeon should be able to do with good results. Once the eardrum has totally healed, as long as the patient can equalize it should work the same as it did before the perforation.

Here are my thoughts about diving with ear tubes, which are similar to my thoughts about diving with a perforation:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/divers-disabilities/374875-diving-ear-tubes.html#post5988528


Feel free to PM me if you need a local referral for a second opinion, etc...

Best,

Mike