Frontal Sinus Headache after First Pool Dive?

[at3whee]

Hey there,
So last night I did my first pool dive for OW cert in ~6 feet of water. The dive went well, with me constantly equalizing my ears and mask. However, about an hour after the dive, I noticed some sharp pain in my frontal sinus; above my left brow. I slept on it thinking it would get better but the pain is worse this morning. I've used saline, sinus rinse, and I'm going to use Afrin/Nasonex. Any ideas of what to do?

Thanks,

Andi

 

[doctormike]

Definitely possible to get barotrauma of the frontal sinus, especially if you have some pre-exisiting sinus disease or an upper respiratory tract infection. Same problem as with any poorly ventilated air filled space (like the ears).

Afrin is the way to go to start, works great and quickly, Nasonex is an allergy drug and takes about a week to get a full effect. If the headache persists, best to see an ENT doc - there are even rare complications in this area...

PM me if you need a local referral...

Best,

Mike

 

[at3whee]

Thanks for the quick reply!

Do you think that Zyrtec will have the same effect? I don't have time to go out and get Sudafed but I have Zyrtec handy.

 

[doctormike]

Thanks for the quick reply!

Do you think that Zyrtec will have the same effect? I don't have time to go out and get Sudafed but I have Zyrtec handy.

Well, Zyrtec and Nasonex are really allergy drugs. They do decongest the nose a bit, but aren't as effective in non-allergic scenarios like barotrauma. Might have some effect thought. But Afrin is good.

Penicillin, Insulin and Afrin - the three best medical advances of the 20th century!

 

[at3whee]

Ah, okay thanks. Only saying because I have mild allergy-induced asthma (doctor signed off on it) and thought that that may have been an underlying cause.

 

[TSandM]

I'm with Mike -- for quick relief, decongestants are most likely to give you the best bang for your buck. Afrin is good; Sudafed might be even better, because it will have effects where a spray may not be able to reach, given that it sounds as though you may have some blockage of the sinus ostia.

An oral antihistamine may be useful if allergies are a significant component of the swelling. The Nasonex is a topical steroid, and requires much more time to have an effect.

And of course, oral analgesics like Tylenol and ibuprofen are appropriate -- the latter perhaps more so, as the antiinflammatory effect may also help with any swelling that's occurred, either before or as a result of the barotrauma.

 

[ScubaMarc]

i get the same, as others said, I take Afrin, Sudafed before every dive, and if i have some pain, i then take aleive(anti inflammatory)