Ear issues

[scubajunky17]

HI all,
I am off diving again for a couple of months. I sometimes have issues with the ears at some point.
I'm looking for some ideas to keep my ears healthy.
What is the best way to clean the ears after diving ?
Do people use anything pre diving ?
What solution should I use if I have ear issues ?
Thanks in advance

 

[LI-er]

I freaking love the feeling I get when my ears are wet from diving or showering and I go in there with a Q-tip and swirl it around. I get a lot of wax out and since I do it regularly I don't get much buildup.

That much being said I have read and was told by an ENT not to ever stick Q-tips in your ears. So far, my ears haven't fallen off nor has have I experienced any adverse affects from my Q-tipping except occasionally the cotton fluff part bends and I hit the side of my ear canal with the tip of the stick and I guess I scratch it a bit because it hurts for a brief moment but that's it.

I have in the past used vented plugs which keep most of the water out of my ears and avoid that "plugged up feeling" but I haven't needed to use them in recent diving.

 

[inquis]

Couple drops of 1:1 mix of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar for 30 sec after a day of diving. Arguably, this is more useful when doing several days in a row.

 

[pintodog]

This is a tough one...everyone has their own "formula" to deal with ears/congestion. I couple the ears/congestion thing because ear problems are frequently caused by congestion in the eustachian tubes. My ears are pretty sensitive. The objective is to keep congestion down, keep ears dry, keep ear canals from getting inflamed, and keep ear canals from getting infected. The advice that I've been given is as follows: 1) Once you are on the dive trip, NEVER use Q tips to clean your ears. Your ears will try to create a protective coating in the canal if you are in the water a lot so removing it could expose the ear canal to bacteria. Basically you are removing a protective coating. 2) Never use alcohol by itself without glycerin. Alcohol will dry out your ears but will also create irritation of the skin (which can lead to inflammation). 3) Vinegar can be useful to create an environment that bacteria don't like. 4) Focus on keeping your ears dry...this means that you should use drying drops as soon as you get back to the live aboard (or room if you are land based) and you should never sleep with ear plugs. 5) Don't use decongestant since you can get a reverse squeeze if it wears off during a dive. I follow #1 religiously...I used to use Q tips and I always had issues towards the end of the trip...I stopped doing that and it worked. I follow #2 and #4 religiously as well. I use ear drops with glycerin (called Swim-EAR in the US). I ignore # 5...I've tried to dive without decongestants and it doesn't work for me. I use 12 hour pseudoephedrine (e.g. Sudafed). I take it right before the first dive and I am usually good to go through 4 dives. I have not needed #3 after I followed #1, #2, #4, & #5!

 

[scubajunky17]

This is a tough one...everyone has their own "formula" to deal with ears/congestion. I couple the ears/congestion thing because ear problems are frequently caused by congestion in the eustachian tubes. My ears are pretty sensitive. The objective is to keep congestion down, keep ears dry, keep ear canals from getting inflamed, and keep ear canals from getting infected. The advice that I've been given is as follows: 1) Once you are on the dive trip, NEVER use Q tips to clean your ears. Your ears will try to create a protective coating in the canal if you are in the water a lot so removing it could expose the ear canal to bacteria. Basically you are removing a protective coating. 2) Never use alcohol by itself without glycerin. Alcohol will dry out your ears but will also create irritation of the skin (which can lead to inflammation). 3) Vinegar can be useful to create an environment that bacteria don't like. 4) Focus on keeping your ears dry...this means that you should use drying drops as soon as you get back to the live aboard (or room if you are land based) and you should never sleep with ear plugs. 5) Don't use decongestant since you can get a reverse squeeze if it wears off during a dive. I follow #1 religiously...I used to use Q tips and I always had issues towards the end of the trip...I stopped doing that and it worked. I follow #2 and #4 religiously as well. I use ear drops with glycerin (called Swim-EAR in the US). I ignore # 5...I've tried to dive without decongestants and it doesn't work for me. I use 12 hour pseudoephedrine (e.g. Sudafed). I take it right before the first dive and I am usually good to go through 4 dives. I have not needed #3 after I followed #1, #2, #4, & #5!

Thanks for your extensive answer.

 

[tridacna]

@pintodog NEVER use use Q-tips in your ears. Before, during or after a dive trip.

Check Ear Problems in Scuba Diving

@doctormike is our resident ENT and offers great ear related advice on SB. His “Ear Beer” formula is listed in the article.

 

[Searcaigh]

I've had multiple issues over the past 38 years especially at the beginning with perforated eardrums (both ears), fungal and bacterial infections etc.

Over the past 10 years I religiously clean my ears at the end of a dive day and use my own "ear beer" formula of alcohol / white vinegar mix (4:1), with the occasional squirt of "Earol" to prevent the ear canals drying out too much, especially when doping three to four dives daily.

I also use a saline rinse before I go to bed at night before a dive and also repeat this in the morning to keep my sinuses clear. I keep some Otrivine handy though just in case I get congestion, but prefer to use it at night rather than prior to the dives if possible.

 

[pintodog]

@pintodog NEVER use use Q-tips in your ears. Before, during or after a dive trip.

Check Ear Problems in Scuba Diving

@doctormike is our resident ENT and offers great ear related advice on SB. His “Ear Beer” formula is listed in the article.

Yes...that has been the message from ENT doctors for decades. What can I say...every dive boat I've been on has folks using Q Tips despite this knowledge. BTW - Do you have any experience with ear dryers? I'm intrigued...seems like a good concept. It is the one tool in my arsenal that I haven't dialed in yet. I'm still relying on the ride on the dive tender back to the mother ship to dry my ears (i.e. the natural breeze).

 

[uncfnp]

I recently discovered that Polysporin ear drops are available in Canada and possibly from Amazon. Has anyone used this?

 

[kinoons]

I recently discovered that Polysporin ear drops are available in Canada and possibly from Amazon. Has anyone used this?

I use ciprodex (cipro and a steroid) for OE and it works great, but only after symptoms have started. I have not used it to prevent any issues.

I’m guessing polysporin could help as well once OE set in. I’m not sure how well it would work to prevent any problems in the first place.