Ear irritation due to cold water

[Andrew Richardson]

I know - not the most useful title.

I have had problems with my ears since I started diving. I have seen ENTs. Currently, I have been told I have exzema in my ears & am using topical steriod drops.

I am at 50 dives and very familiar with equalization having suffered barotrauma.

On some dives, I find my left ear feels inflamed immediately after the dive (ie. feels like water remains in the external canal). This is especially true for shallow & cold dives (30', 36F). Sometimes this only lasts a few hours and others it lasts for a week. The topical steriods definitely help.

My question - I am wondering if this is related to cold water irritating the canal vice barotrauma and if so, is there something I can do proactively? Vaseline was suggested but I worried about removing the vaseline afterward.

I once had a cold uticaria reaction when I was a child.

Andrew

 

[TSandM]

The most likely cause of a feeling of fullness in the ear after diving is mild barotrauma. You might enjoy and benefit from watching THIS video (warning, it's about 40 minutes long) which really does a good job of explaining the "equalize early and often" thing. A lot of people don't think they've had barotrauma, because they never had any pain; but you don't have to hurt to exude fluid into the middle ear.

 

[gert7to3]

Cold water gives me more issues with equalization than warmer water too.

I bought a Pro Ear mask and it helped alot. The mask has cups which cover your ears. There are tubes which run from the mask to the ear cups. The ear chambers equalize at the same time as you exhale into your mask to equalize the eye chamber.

Another, slightly cheaper, quick fix might be a pair of Docs Pro Plugs. These are vented earplugs which limit water entry into your outer ear canals. The vents keep the pressure equal by forming a compressible bubble next to your eardrum. Your ears won't be completely dry, but there is much less water exchange. The water which goes in will stay warmer.