Bubbles popping in ears

[cyklon_300]

on 'sinus noises dive' yielded:

You may have Eustachian Tube Dysfunction (ETD.

There are two tiny ventilation and drainage tubes that run from our middle ear space (the area behind the eardrum) to the back of our throats (near the adenoids) called the eustachian tubes. The main purpose of these ventilation tubes is to make sure the middle ear space is filled with AIR at the same atmospheric pressure as the outside atmosphere. As tiny as these little tubes are, they tend to do a great job. However, they are prone to becoming “dysfunctional”. Colds, allergies, environmental irritants, sinus infections, tonsillitis, cigarette smoke, airplane flights, driving in a mountainous area, scuba diving, etc. all can the eustachian tubes to malfunction. When this happens, fluid and/or changes in air pressure will occur in the sensitive middle ear space. This will compromise your hearing (stuffy, full feeling, crackling noises, etc.), and your ears may feel a need to “pop.

Most cases of ETD will self-resolve in a week or so. Rarely will ETD will become chronic, but it does happen. Although controversial, decongestants (like pseudoephedrine) can help, but not all people can medically use them. It is always best to check with your own medical provider first. Prescription nasal corticosteroid sprays have also be used, especially in people with allergies. Either way, it will take TIME to resolve, so be patient and hang in there. If your symptoms persists longer than a few weeks, or if you are having signs of infection (fever, sore throat, sinus pain, etc.), you need to inform your medical provider.

 

[LI Diver]

Thanks Cyk

 

[creamofwheat]

Not sure about rice crispies noises, but i know that when i ascend, i get a squeaky sound in my ear, which i assume is the air coming out of it. It's not painful or anything. Mind you, when i descend and equalize my ears, I also get the squeaky noise.

I am no medical professional, but, if it doesn't hurt, i don't think it's too big a deal. if it becomes painful, then you may want to head to a doc about it...you can never be too careful with the ears.

 

[DiverBuoy]

BTW Ihear those same sounds from about 15' up & they do reduce if I slow down to an incredibly slow acent rate.
Micro-bubbles in bloodstream??
Possibly being heard because of close proximity of artery to inner ear??

Brewone0to
Just Another Florida Diver

Micro bubbles, no sounds too scary! I prefer to think about it as reverse equalizing I think I've actually heard air bubbles buzz out of right ear once!
As far as that sinus thing I often have some bloody mucus in my mask and throat after a dive. Is this an omen that my sinuses will follow?

PS I just popped a 24 hr sudafed while sitting at my desk and I will hit the gym later and think stressful thoughts while running on treadmill ! If you don't see anymore posts from me you'll know how it worked out!

These additional details makes me think even more along the lines of it being a round window ear rupture. This is far more common for allergy suffering divers with equalizing problems than most realize AND once you've done it you are susceptible to a repeat. It may take 3 weeks to heal, if you are still finding yourself with wheezing like sounds in your ear after a sneeze, or if you previously (such as when you were a kid) used to hold your nose when sneezing to avoid any snot coming out in embarrasment you could be susceptible.

 

[LI Diver]

Could be, I don't remember the sneezing thing but have definately equalized too hard. I'm going to either see ENT before next dive or try the sudafed and inhaler route because this painful equalizing is for the birds!
PS I tolerated the 24 hr sudafed and afrin inhaler fine this afternoon even with a strenous workout at the gym. I was a little concerned because of a few episodes earlier in year w/mild chest pains. I saw a cardioligist for them and had a stress test that came back negative. Might have been digestive or blood pressure related. At the time I had cut my bp meds in half but since went back to full dose and stopped eating spicy food and have not had an episode in quite a while.

 

[wreckchick]

I'm thinking you should be under a dr's care for the high blood pressure and you should look at any drug interactions between those meds and sudafed/afrin. That said (and I'm not a doc either) the crackling in your ears on ascent is totally normal. It's the way your ears equalize to the decrease in pressure. I seriously doubt that it's a round window injury, microbubbles or anything I've heard mentioned in this thread.

The blood in the mask is probably because you aren't equalizing your mask on descent. I do see this with novice divers and if you continue to dive you'll probably see it less or not at all in the future.

Painful equalizing is doing it incorrectly. It should NEVER hurt to equalize your ears. There are some things you can do to help yourself equalize easier, but there's already plenty of info on the site to help you with that so I won't rehash it here. If you have specific questions, you can PM me and I'm happy to help.

Good Luck and Have Fun!!!

Rachel