mastoid infections with ear polyps/cysts

[hollow]

happy new year to all!

not sure if there is light for me at the end of the tunnel with this query... but i am hoping i may still be able to dive in the future.

I am an inexperienced diver (just around 50 dives) and have long had ear issues. finally (now that I'm pregnant and not diving, and I have a good doctor ENT Specialist) I got a peek inside at what's been causing me huge amounts of frustration and ear infections.

I have a large hole in my left eardrum (so i constantly hear a sound like a hiss or rushing water) and there is a large polyp (9mm) that either grew through it and broke the eardrum or grew off of the back of it.. My doc said there may be a cyst behind that (but we are waiting on baby to arrive before we Xray/ or CTscan..whatever they will do to look at it) he is pretty sure there is a mastoid infection which i am starting to treat with antibiotics now -delivery is at the end of this month/first week of feb, and i have been using hydrocortizone/corticoid steriod drops for my ear as well ..this shrank the polyp a bit... if i am late on the drops -or fall asleep before i do them, i can feel my head throbbing on that side and now the mastoid area sometimes
aches a bit so I take tylenol. looking forward to taking care of it and only have a few weeks left of pregnancy before i know exactly what else is in there.

So, what happens if there is a cyst? what does surgery on the mastoid mean? (besides someone dremmelling in my skull) We are planning to raise the kids on a boat and trust me I will be in and under the water immediately if some one needs help...are there medicines that can keep me healthy if that happens?

Is there a way that diving can be part of my future? or will any surgery on my mastoid/middle ear mean I can't even put my head underwater? Is is too dangerous or would i be able to be under water if necessary if i use that pro-ear mask ?

Thanks for reading.

 

[doctormike]

happy new year to all!

not sure if there is light for me at the end of the tunnel with this query... but i am hoping i may still be able to dive in the future.

I have a large hole in my left eardrum (so i constantly hear a sound like a hiss or rushing water) and there is a large polyp (9mm) that either grew through it and broke the eardrum or grew off of the back of it.. My doc said there may be a cyst behind that (but we are waiting on baby to arrive before we Xray/ or CTscan..whatever they will do to look at it)

...

Is there a way that diving can be part of my future? or will any surgery on my mastoid/middle ear mean I can't even put my head underwater? Is is too dangerous or would i be able to be under water if necessary if i use that pro-ear mask ?

Thanks for reading.

Hi,

Welcome to the forum!

Complex ear disease is notoriously difficult to diagnose or comment about online, since every case is different. However, it sounds like what you are describing is a possible cholesteatoma (this is probably what your ENT doctor was referring to), not an actual cyst.

Chronic perforations of the eardrum are rarely compatible with safe diving, and many surgeons will recommend against diving even after repair. On the other hand, some people with good Eustachian tube function (you wouldn't know as long as the hole is open) can dive after repair of minor perforations. However, what you are describing sounds like a perforation which is complicated by either granulation tissue or cholesteatoma.

Granulation tissue (or polyp) is an overreaction of the body to an inflammatory focus - either chronic infection in the mastoid (air cells behind the ear), or sometimes a foreign body. A cholesteatoma is a sac of dead skin cells with a lining that expands and erodes into the surrounding ear structures, bones, etc... Although it ends in "-oma", is is NOT a tumor of any type.

In either case, a complicated perforation with granulation tissue, infection or cholesteatoma almost always needs to be treated surgically, as there is really no medical treatment which will fix things in the long term. However, drops and oral antibiotics may be occasionally necessary, especially when the perforation becomes infected.

So in answer to your question, I would have to say - in typically unhelpful fashion - that the devil is in the details, and your prognosis and the exact surgery needed will depend on the extent of disease as demonstrated by the CT scan. I am surprised that you were able to dive with the perforation without more symptoms...

Please keep us posted, an congratulations on the upcoming addition to your family!

 

[hollow]

Hi there,

I really appreciate the info... it will all depend on what they find (in my ...skull...that'll be fun)and thank you for reminding me it's not a cancerous thing..it certainly explained why i've had mysterious ear problems for ears and had infections that would clear in about 6months...so i was always between infections and assumed the ear couldn't heal...didn't expect barotrauma since I never had pain..maybe timing was just weird.anyhoo,
my ENT is great, he was reluctant to let me know yea or nay, about getting my head wet in the future at the initial visit so we will see where it goes. It'd be awful to lose the ocean...that I don't want to think about. But, baby is swimming and kicking and will hatch as soon as he sees fit, daddy is in belize taking pictures and video for a liveaboard...and we are watching the snow pile up in the northeast.

Be well, and thanks again for being out there.

 

[doctormike]

No problem, always happy to help as best as I can...



Feel free to keep us posted, and stay warm!