Ear Plugs

[Tom Nic]

Has anyone used vented ear plugs while diving?

I've been diving for a week in Bonaire and the last few days the only way I can describe it is I felt like I had water in my ear. I've been having slight discomfort, but not pain. It has NOT been pressure related and I've had no trouble equalizing.

I've been using alcohol drops in my ears to dry them. Today I did not dive as a precaution. (Yes, it was hard!!)

As I went around the island I was recommended Doc's ProPlugs. None of the shops had my size, and only a limited number were open because it's Sunday. Buddy Dive's dive shop was very helpful and measured me with a chart and determined I need a large - apparently a common size because they are out as are all the shops I went to. I'm hoping a couple shops that were closed today will have my size tomorrow.

My thinking is primarily to try the plus as a means of keeping moisture out of my ear. Again - it is NOT an equalization or pressure issue at this point. My concern has been "Swimmer's Ear" or some kind of ear infection, but I haven't experienced it before or spoken with anyone who has so I thought I'd turn to the collective wisdom of the board and see what happens!

I've read the articles on plugs on the DAN site and it seems pretty standard, X doctors saying it's fine, X doctors saying there isn't enough research so I can't give my opinion so you can't sue me (Tom's lawyereze translation, my apologies in advance to all our docs and lawyers). I understand that docs writing those articles have to be VERY circumspect in their opinions because there is such a WIDE range of issues that can cause problems with ears.

Thanks in advance...

-Tom Nic

[fmerkel]

They are fine for divers. I've been using them for years (my wife does also).
Contrary to their own ads I don't think they help (or hinder) equalization at all.
Properly fitted they do mostly keep water out of the ear. I've gotten otitis media (outer ear infection) once (also in Bon Aire) once and it's a bi**h). It ruins several days of diving.
Along with application of dry-z-ear (ear beer) after a dive I think it can prevent Swimmer's ear (otitis) completely. Not too many people get it locally but it's not uncommon in the tropics.

In my case I started DPP use due to surfer's ear (extosis) from years of windsurfing. After diving I had problems that sounds like your symptoms and I knew for a fact I was clearing correctly (early, often, and well). The DPP have eliminated this completely.

FWIW I also had the experience before I started on the Docs PP of having a wax plug pushed up against the ear drum while diving. Felt like wearing an ear plug-muffled sound, odd sensation, but no trouble clearing (popping) the inner ear at all. I knew what was going on and kept diving without incident but would NOT advise that to anyone that did not have a pretty sophisticated level of knowledge about how their ears work above and below the water.

You can somewhat differentiate between inner ear issues and outer ear problems by grabbing the outer ear and yanking it around a tad aggressively. Outer ear infection will generally cause noticeable pain, inner ear barotrauma mostly will not.

Going for a dive with outer ear infection almost immediately makes the condition worse, even snorkeling as it's the water, not the pressure causing problems.

Get the bright red ones (harder to lose), with the vent of course. Figure out how to keep track of them.
Be prepared to have fellow divers freak occasionally when you put them in.
ALWAYS check potency of the vent before using. To be graphic I wet my ear canal area with a little spit on my finger for lubrication, then suck on the plug to test the vent and to lubricate a bit before insertion. Works well.

Isn't that just more than you wanted to know?

Fritz

[ldevore]

I felt like I had water in my ear.

I hate to admit this...but, this is how I feel everytime I do a lot of diving (more than a couple of dives a week). I just thought it was "normal". Maybe I should keep a closer watch on it??? I would be interested to know if others also experience this.

Lauri

PS: Please send our best to Liz & Ed.

[Tom Nic]

I felt like I had water in my ear.

I hate to admit this...but, this is how I feel everytime I do a lot of diving (more than a couple of dives a week).

Lauri

PS: Please send our best to Liz & Ed.

Fritz - thank you, that's exactly what I'm after.

Lauri - I will greet Liz & Ed for you.

WIth the descriptions given here and on my FB post I don't thin I have an outer ear infection - I can yank on my ear and it doesn't hurt. If there was infection it seems as though the alcohol treatments either stopped it or prevented it from getting worse.

I also have been clearing as carefully as I know how to do, so baurotrama seems unlikely to me, but there's not much else it could be.

I'll be looking for the plugs and giving them a whirl, and also starting to dose with ibuprofen for any possible swelling.

[fmerkel]

If you are doing fairly religious alcohol TX after a dive that lowers your probability of otitis.
The alcohol may burn a tad, not unusual. If it burns like HE!!, that's another indication of otitis.

For folks new to this there are 2 major ways of hurting your ears diving: pressure injuries (barotrauma), and outer ear infection. All you need for that is routine, prolonged dunks in the water. It's worse in the tropics because: 1) the water is warmer and the strain of bugs and fungii causing infection do better there, 2) you dive/snorkel like crazy so spend a lot of time in the water. You can also get it in the NW but you have to be exceptionally active or unlucky.

Best treatment is preventative. DO NOT clean your ears out routinely with a cotton swab. The wax actually provides protection. It can also chafe the ear canal, causing small breaks in the lining that allow the microbes to get in. If you absolutely must do it, do it a week before diving and then leave it alone.

1) Immediately after a dive put some dry-z-ears (drugstore, various brands) in the ear to flush out the water. Made mostly of alcohol it breaks down the surface tension of the water and allows it to drain out far more easily. It has some bacteriostatic properties. They usually have a nice sized bottle with a long skinny neck to do this easier. Save the bottle.

2. Make up some 'ear beer' - 50% rubbing alcohol and 50% white vinegar (any flavor in a pinch). After a day of diving put that in the ear with your handy little new bottle and leave it in for 3-5 minutes per ear. The vinegar is a potent bacteriostatic and fungicide and less harsh on the ears than the alcohol. I would NOT use the dry-z-ears for this as it is almost pure alcohol and irritating. You can even balance the beer more toward vinegar for this application. Exact proportions are not critical.

3. If this is a chronic problem with you put a couple drops of refined cooking oil in your ear after they have dried out. Lay on your side to let it drain in well. This is like putting lotion on chapped hands to soothe the inflammation.

If the mere act of getting your ear canal wet makes them hurt something awful you are not ready to go back in the water and persisting will only create a world of hurt.

Lauri - you absolutely are not doing something right, either clearing poorly or having outer ear problems. You can clear successfully through a whole dive, and even several dives but if you are behind the pressure curve and forcing it a bit even the clearing is causing inflammation with excessive force and this catches up to you. It is certainly not the problem NOT clearing would be, but it's still a problem. Clear on the surface and at least once every 2 feet to 20 feet. If your first clear is at 4 feet you've gone too far. If 6 feet you are nearing pressures likely to blow your eardrum out by clearing.

[ldevore]

Lauri - you absolutely are not doing something right, either clearing poorly or having outer ear problems. You can clear successfully through a whole dive, and even several dives but if you are behind the pressure curve and forcing it a bit even the clearing is causing inflammation with excessive force and this catches up to you. It is certainly not the problem NOT clearing would be, but it's still a problem. Clear on the surface and at least once every 2 feet to 20 feet. If your first clear is at 4 feet you've gone too far. If 6 feet you are nearing pressures likely to blow your eardrum out by clearing.

Ya know, I never feel like I have any problems clearing my ears. I literally remember 2 out of 250 dives where I have had any problems with clearing my ears (both times I was able to come up, clear my ears, then head down and complete the dive with no problems).

[fmerkel]

Got any history consistent with surfer's ear - getting lots of cold water flushes? NW diving you generally only get a single cold water hit, then it warms up and stays relatively warm due to the hood so that alone doesn't seem to cause it. A leaky hood could be a problem. Jeez, I know one guy dives hoodless in the late summer around here.
But if you surf, windsurf, anything that has you falling in the water and getting a new batch of cold water up the ear it might create an issue that causes susceptibility in NW diving. That's my own theory for my problem. ProPlugs made it go away so there is some support there.

The feeling of water in the ear after multiple dives indicates something not quite right. Now you have to figure out what it is.
Maybe it IS water. Get some dry-z-ears and try it out after the dive. Some folks (me) have pretty crooked ear canals and it's hard to get the water out once in there. If you have some extosis (bony narrowing) starting it makes it all the worse.

[Pinkpadigal]

Tom,

I know one of our DMs (Ellyn) would not have made it past AOW without her Doc Proplugs. She recommends them to anyone with ear clearing issues and they seem to work wonders...

[moonsnailfan]

I won't dive without my Pro Plugs. Even while swimming, if I get a little water in my ears, it's there for at least a week. The Pro Plugs have made this an issue of the past, or at least a rare one. Guess I am one of those "lucky" people who have ear canals that make drainage difficult.

[Tom Nic]

Just an update on my ear issues in Bonaire...

The ProPlugs helped immensely. I took an above water day, then used the plugs when I dove. While my ear issues did not immediately go away, they did get better.

My conclusion is that either I had a beginning outer ear infection, or else that I had some water in my ear that wasn't coming out. Quite frankly, I'm thinking I just basically beat the crap out of my ears with more diving than I've ever done in a 12 day period - 37 dives. While my profiles were NOT aggressive, that's still ALOT of diving any way you slice it, so moisture, pressure, etc just gave me kind of an "ear fatigue". I could yank on my outer ear with no pain, so this wasn't an infection. There was more of a dull ache and the feeling something wasn't right.

So....

**I started using alchohol (in my ears, not Jim Beam!) and then swabbing.

**I started taking 800 milligrams of Ibuprofen, and this definitely made a difference. It was more than just pain relief, the anti-inflammatory effects of ibuprofen really helped in taking the swelling down. I had someone tell me that they begin to do this prophylactically anytime they are doing multiple dives more than a couple days in a row. I will do the same next time as well.

**I used the ProPlugs simply to cut down on the water in my ear, and they worked wonderfully.

**I took a dry day to let things settle down somewhat.

I've done one dive since coming back from Bonaire and have had no issues. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to dispense their wisdom, advice, and experience!