Ringing In Ears

[emilynewbie]

Thanks to everyone's advice from this board, I decided to take a Discover Scuba Diving course 6 days ago. I didn't go deeper than maybe 10 feet (my estimate of how deep the pool was), and I didn't notice any pain in either of my ears. (Awesome!)

I was pretty excited that my ears wouldn't be an issue b/c I was worried about pain/discomfort, but two or three days after my course, I had ringing in my left ear only before I went to bed. Every day since, I've had ringing in my left ear almost every night before I fall asleep and sometimes in the morning when I wake up.

Is this normal? Should I get this checked out before I do anymore diving?

 

[t4e]

personally i would go see a doctor

this thread might answer some of your concerns

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/diving-medicine/2204-my-ear-ringing.html

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

Thanks to everyone's advice from this board, I decided to take a Discover Scuba Diving course 6 days ago. I didn't go deeper than maybe 10 feet (my estimate of how deep the pool was), and I didn't notice any pain in either of my ears. (Awesome!)

I was pretty excited that my ears wouldn't be an issue b/c I was worried about pain/discomfort, but two or three days after my course, I had ringing in my left ear only before I went to bed. Every day since, I've had ringing in my left ear almost every night before I fall asleep and sometimes in the morning when I wake up.

Is this normal? Should I get this checked out before I do anymore diving?

This isn't normal after a dive, but two or three days out, it may not be related to the dive at all. Is it possible that you had this before you tried diving and are just more aware of it now?

This is a bit of a stretch, but have you ever had radiation treatment to your head or neck, or is there any possibility you could have neuropathy in that area?

 

[TSandM]

I agree with DDM, that having this begin several days after your diving experience makes it less likely that it is dive-related . . . unless you are also experiencing some muffled hearing in that ear. If you don't equalize well enough, you can end up with some fluid in the middle ear, which muffles your hearing. With less outside noise to hide it, any tinnitus (the technical term for ringing in the ears) becomes much more noticeable.

Are you by any chance taking aspirin or a quinine product? Those can cause ringing in the ears.

 

[emilynewbie]

I've had random ringing in my ears before, but I haven't had it in a while, and it was never, ever this persistent.

I have not had any radiation treatment or anything like that, no problems I'm aware of in my neck/head, and I 'm not taking aspirin.

As per the recommendations in the other thread and the instructor that I took my course through, last night I used a teaspoon of vinegar/alcohol mixture in my ear for a about 2 minutes and then drained it. It didn't feel like it REALLY entered my ear though. Not sure if it's supposed to. Didn't notice any difference today. Not yet, anyway.

---------- Post added April 10th, 2012 at 03:24 PM ----------

Also, I haven't noticed any muffled hearing in my left ear either.

 

[Duke Dive Medicine]

I've had random ringing in my ears before, but I haven't had it in a while, and it was never, ever this persistent.

I have not had any radiation treatment or anything like that, no problems I'm aware of in my neck/head, and I 'm not taking aspirin.

As per the recommendations in the other thread and the instructor that I took my course through, last night I used a teaspoon of vinegar/alcohol mixture in my ear for a about 2 minutes and then drained it. It didn't feel like it REALLY entered my ear though. Not sure if it's supposed to. Didn't notice any difference today. Not yet, anyway.

---------- Post added April 10th, 2012 at 03:24 PM ----------

Also, I haven't noticed any muffled hearing in my left ear either.

Emily,

Despite your report that you didn't feel pain, inner ear barotrauma can't be ruled out here. If that's what you have, you need to be evaluated. I'd recommend you go see an ENT physician, and when you're scheduling the appointment, mention the possibility of inner ear barotrauma and request to be seen as soon as possible.

Best regards,
DDM

 

[gkwalt]

DDM & TS and M: I have a question about inner ear barotrauma. Does only occur during descent with increasing pressure or can it occur during ascent, i.e., a reverse block? Thanks