Question for Fellow Divers

[ph03n1xkny]

Hi Guys,

I've been outta the water now for a few weeks recovering from some sinus issues i've been having and while i've been out of diving action, i've been doing some thinking and had these questions, couldn't find any answers on it so maybe somebody here on sealine can help??

Firstly: Can your wetsuit hoody (In my case Open Cell) cause problems with equalizing due to air that gets trapped inside the ear cannot escape and forms a sort of a vacuum? (Sounds funny i know)

Secondly, has anybody tried the "Docs vented Pro Plugs".

Apparently they were used be some freediver somewhere to dive to 192M without problems with equalising and have helped many people who struggle to equalise with both scuba and freediving. The products website claims to be the only earplug that can be safetly used for all water sports and have helped over 65% of divers who have had problems in the past with equalising.  

Anybody know if this is true and anybody tried them?

Thanks in advance.

 

[MOGGY]

Ear plugs will not help for sinus problems.

Try to cut out dairy products.

 

[ph03n1xkny]

Hi Moggy,

Thanks for the reply.

This, however, is not a question really related to suffering form sinustis.

Its more to find out about if anybody knows if the water pressure impact the air that gets trapped inside your wetsuit hoody and cause damage to your ears, and also if anybody knows about the above mentioned Doc's Proplugs.

Thanks again.

 

[Capespearo]

Your wetsuit will cause problems if the open cell material seals against your ear on decent.I have taken a hot nail and made holes in the hoodie over the ear canal to stop this.It also helps flushing fresh water through your ears as some nasties can form in your suit which cause ear infections.

Haven't tried the ear plugs though.

 

[ph03n1xkny]

Hi CapeSpearo,

Thanks for the information, Do you also think that having your snorkel over your ear could cause problems?

Also, by making the holes in the hoodie, is it going to allow a lot more water to flush through the suit or does it not make much difference?

 

[Vishan]

Hi,  The problem with chronic sinusitis is just that - its chronic and requires ongoing treatment with a cortisone nasal spray and an oral antihistamine.  People who suffer from this have a problem due to environmental allergies eg. dust, pollen and unfortunately these cannot be avoided as its in the air.  However saying that, I think you need to do an allergy test to see what you might be allergic to - in some instances if you allergic to one thing eg. house dust mite, you can take a course of desensatising drops/injections to reduce the severity of the allergy.  Chronic allergic sinusitis leads to congestion and blockage of the Eustachian Tube which is the tube connecting your middle ear to the back of your throat.  This tube equalised pressure when you diving or when there are differences in pressure between the external environment and within your ears and sinuses.  If its blocked you unable to equalise pressure and thats the problem I think you having.

 

My opinion regarding the wetsuit is that this is not your problem.  Normally the wetsuit is quite elastic and will allow for some expansion of air if there is any trapped.  Your ear canal is very small and holds very little air so if it were to expand, there is ample space in the wetsuit to allow for this.  The ear plugs might be a solution for someone who has problems with water within the ears and recurrent infections but cant see how its going to help with a blocked Eustachian tube problem.  Hope this helps in some way.

 

[Capespearo]

The holes in the hoodie have definitely helped,and they don't cause enough extra water to flush through the suit to be a problem.The snorkel will definitely have no effect.

I agree the suit may not be the sole cause of your ear problems,but the open cell suits DO definitely seal against your ear at times making equalisation impossible.

 

 

[ph03n1xkny]

Thanks for all the help guys.

Im going to try what both of you Suggest, because i do believe it to be a combination of both. Hopefully, i can get down to the cause of all my problems with Equalising and sinustis and get back to diving.

Thumbs up to you guys....SEALINE MEMBERS ROCK!

 

[MOGGY]

Can you clear your ears normally on land ?

If you can, you may be leaving it too late and building up too much pressure.

I have found the getting people to clear more often helps a lot with difficult clearing.

Once you hurt the eustachian tube a bit, it aggrivates the problem.

I picked up a blockage on the last day of nationals, once and by forcing the clearing, it made it worse.

I don't have to touch my nose to clear, but then I do it a lot more frequently than other divers. If I leave it too long, then I battle.

I practise clearing on land.

I also sniff sea water, but you can buy the sterilised version from the chemist, it has some french name.

Sorry about starting just about every sentence with I ( sound like an I specialist )

 

[pelagic]

NUKE has a pair of those doc ear plugs and i think he is happy with them. I like my hoodie to seal nicely and i find that any new cold water irritates my ears if it enters my hoodie. pm nuke for more info

 

[ph03n1xkny]

@Moggy, Thanks for the information, yes i can clear my ears properly on land. The reason i am thinking it might be due to the wetsuit is i didnt have much trouble equalising before i got the open cell one, but then since then i have also started to suffer alot more from sinustis, so im thinking it has to do a bit with both, however, im going to go see the ENT asap just to check that everything is 100%.

@pelagic, thanks for the info...will send him a PM, would be quite interesting to know if they work.

Thanks again guys.

 

[Freakazoid]

I agree with the hoody holes. Made a big difference to my equalization when I first got an open cell suit. I agree with Moggy, not equalizing early enough seems to be one of the biggest causes of diving problems. Especially in dives like crayfishing and kelp type dives where you dive in and out of normal equalization depth, relatively shallow. You get lazy and don't equalize and at the end of the dive your ears are sore.

 

[Nuke]

I've been using the doc ear plugs and are happy with them. I still get a drop or 2 in my ears but nothing like before. I've also got bad surfers ear so that's why i'm using the plugs. I have to go for a OP but leaving it for winter next year.

The plugs are about R200 at Atlantic Surf Co in Blouberg. Just make sure you get the one whith the little pin hole in it. This is used for surfing and diving. The one with out the hole is used for nomal swimming.

Hope it helps!