sinus barotrauma question

[PeCeDiver]

Hi all,

last week I made three shallow dives (<20 meters). After two of them I had a slightly numb feeling in my cheek. It went away after 30 minutes max. On Saturday we made two dives on the NorthSea. These dives were a bit deeper (35 meters). After each this numb feeling had progressed to severe tooth pain that lasted for hours. It was extremely painful after the second dive. I contacted DAN on Sunday and their doctor said it was probably a sinus barotrauma. I went to my doctor today and he prescribed tablets containing cortizone to get rid of the infection.

My question is: has anybody experienced this before and how long did they stay out of the water. We have a trip planned in two weeks and I'm not sure whether everything will be OK in time.

Thanks,

Peter

 

[DocVikingo]

Hi Peter,

Sounds unpleasant.

The symptoms described could have been the result of sinus barotrauma.

Oral (or nasal spray) cortisone sometimes is prescribed to ease swelling and congestion within the sinuses, thereby facilitating freer flow of air among these spaces and the nose. It does not fight infection--antibiotics are used for this purpose. Based on the doctor's prescription, one has to conclude that infection is not involved. If it is, cortisone actually could prove problematic. Assuming that the prescription is appropriate and the sinus condition responds, maximum benefit should be achieved within two weeks.

It also is possible that these complaints were the result extremely cold water contacting the face or barotrauma involving a tooth.

If on a future dive the symptoms return despite proper precautions, the individual should immediately cease scuba and consult a physician with diving medicine knowledge, preferably an ENT.

Helpful?

This is educational only and does not constitute or imply a doctor-patient relationship. It is not medical advice to you or any other individual and should not be construed as such.

Regards.

DocVikingo

 

[ppo2_diver]

I had the same thing happen to me earlier this year. But I never made it down to 15 feet. My sinuses cleared up and I was diving again less than two weeks later.

 

[PeCeDiver]

Hi Peter,

Sounds unpleasant.

The symptoms described could have been the result of sinus barotrauma.

Oral (or nasal spray) cortisone sometimes is prescribed to ease swelling and congestion within the sinuses, thereby facilitating freer flow of air among these spaces and the nose. It does not fight infection--antibiotics are used for this purpose. Based on the doctor's prescription, one has to conclude that infection is not involved. If it is, cortisone actually could prove problematic. Assuming that the prescription is appropriate and the sinus condition responds, maximum benefit should be achieved within two weeks.

It also is possible that these complaints were the result extremely cold water contacting the face or barotrauma involving a tooth.

If on a future dive the symptoms return despite proper precautions, the individual should immediately cease scuba and consult a physician with diving medicine knowledge, preferably an ENT.

Helpful?

This is educational only and does not constitute or imply a doctor-patient relationship. It is not medical advice to you or any other individual and should not be construed as such.

Regards.

DocVikingo

Thanks for the feedback.
It was more than unpleasant. I had the feeling my jaw was going to explode. The weird thing was that I could go down easily and I did not feel anything special until I got near to the surface.
I will wait until the end of next week and then do a "try dive". If that works I'll go on the trip. If I still have a problem I'll go to a ENT.

I also have an apointment with my dentist to rule out any dental issues.

The dives we had planned are deep wrecks (+70 meters) using TX in our rebreathers. I do not want to risk a reverse block with such pressure differenses.


Peter

 

[DocVikingo]

Sounds like a plan, Peter.

Best of luck.

DocVikingo

 

[PeCeDiver]

I went to the dentist yesterday and he found nothing wrong with my teeth. He took several scans and all looks normal. I have an apointment on Tuesday with the Belgian DAN ENT. This guy really knows his stuff and has a heart for diving and divers. He managed to see me on short notice.
)-: The wheather is nice in Belgium and I can't get wet. Damn. Really looking forward to get into the water again.

 

[Courtneyf82]

I am having that same prob, but my tooth hurts 10 min after surfacing, I went to dentist and they said there was no prob, ENT time for me!

 

[DocVikingo]

Hey Peter,

Sounds like you're moving things along.

I figured the tooth hypothesis was a relatively weak one, but it made sense to rule it out. The ENT should find it useful info.

Again, best of luck and keep us posted.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[PeCeDiver]

Hi Doc,

Update - I went to the ENT today (great guy, knows his stuff and he is an active diver). He took a CT scan and the sinusses on the left are completely blocked. No diving for at least another week, but probably longer. So there goes my "deep wreck trip" to Croatia. He said that the mucus lining of the sinus was torn loose because of the barotrauma. He drasticly increased the dose of cortisone. I hope it all heals without operation.

Ciao,

Peter

 

[DocVikingo]

Hey Peter,

Well, now you know. And rapidly, too.

Hopefully the corisone and a chance for healing of traumatized sinus tissue will do the job.

All the best.

DocVikingo