Swimmers Ear

[mcmalibu]

Every time my wife goes wakeboarding she gets water in her ears. Anyone else have this problem? Anyone know of anything we can do to prevent this from happening? She used to swim when she was younger and never had this problem. We've tried the over-the-counter treatments but I would like to prevent it from even happening.

[Hack]

It is actually from the wind blowing into the ear while water is present in the ear. Stop one or the other from happening and you have your solution.

Helmet with earflaps

ear plugs

Winter hat after getting out of the water

Stop dipping your head back while in the water (that is how water usually flows into the tubes)

Etc....

[foxhall]

I assume by water in her ear you mean stuck in her ear canal after going under and not actually behind her ear drum. That would take a pretty powerfull nasal flush from falling to force it thru the eustachian tube into the ear or a parforated ear drum. For water in the canal use a 50/50 mix of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar. The alcohol will displace the water and help dry it while the vinegar acidifies the canal and prevents infection. It should not burn as long as the canal is not inflamed. It it burns make it 70/30 vinegar/alcohol.

[WakingMeHappy]

Do NOT wear ear plugs. If/when her head slams the water the ear plugs can/will be forced well into the ear canal. It will then take a surgen to remove the ear plug and repair the ear drum.

[LouDoc]

It is actually from the wind blowing into the ear while water is present in the ear. Stop one or the other from happening and you have your solution.

Nothing could be further from the truth! The wind has absolutely nothing to do with it.

I assume by water in her ear you mean stuck in her ear canal after going under and not actually behind her ear drum. That would take a pretty powerfull nasal flush from falling to force it thru the eustachian tube into the ear or a parforated ear drum. For water in the canal use a 50/50 mix of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar. The alcohol will displace the water and help dry it while the vinegar acidifies the canal and prevents infection. It should not burn as long as the canal is not inflamed. It it burns make it 70/30 vinegar/alcohol.

Now, this is excellent advice! I might add that the other reason it may burn is canal abrasions that can easily be caused by even gentle q-tip swabbing. One of the most common reasons for repeated episodes of swimmer's ear (otitis externa) is removal of all the ear wax. Wax has a slight acidity to it that prevents both infection and itching. So, keep the cotton swabs out of the ear and follow the advice above with the 50/50 mix of isopropyl alcohol and distilled white vinegar.

Just to clarify, swimmer's ear occurs in the external ear canal. With an intact eardrum water cannot get to the opening of the eustachian tube which connects the middle ear space to the back of the nose. (A perforation or patent tympanostomy tube would allow water to pass from the external auditory canal into the middle ear.)

[foxhall]

It is actually from the wind blowing into the ear while water is present in the ear. Stop one or the other from happening and you have your solution.

Nothing could be further from the truth! The wind has absolutely nothing to do with it.

I assume by water in her ear you mean stuck in her ear canal after going under and not actually behind her ear drum. That would take a pretty powerfull nasal flush from falling to force it thru the eustachian tube into the ear or a parforated ear drum. For water in the canal use a 50/50 mix of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar. The alcohol will displace the water and help dry it while the vinegar acidifies the canal and prevents infection. It should not burn as long as the canal is not inflamed. It it burns make it 70/30 vinegar/alcohol.

Now, this is excellent advice! I might add that the other reason it may burn is canal abrasions that can easily be caused by even gentle q-tip swabbing. One of the most common reasons for repeated episodes of swimmer's ear (otitis externa) is removal of all the ear wax. Wax has a slight acidity to it that prevents both infection and itching. So, keep the cotton swabs out of the ear and follow the advice above with the 50/50 mix of isopropyl alcohol and distilled white vinegar.

Just to clarify, swimmer's ear occurs in the external ear canal. With an intact eardrum water cannot get to the opening of the eustachian tube which connects the middle ear space to the back of the nose. (A perforation or patent tympanostomy tube would allow water to pass from the external auditory canal into the middle ear.)

LouDoc,

Just curious but what do you practice? I am an ENT in metro Kansas City area.

[wakeup]

I wakeboard a lot and tend to get water trapped in the ears. After each ride I just use one of those over the counter ear drops which contain alcohol (antiseptic eardrops). Keep it on the boat and never had a problem since. I buy mine from places like Target, Wal-mart.

Heard the vinegar/alcohol is a winner also. Just never tried it.

[LouDoc]

It is actually from the wind blowing into the ear while water is present in the ear. Stop one or the other from happening and you have your solution.

Nothing could be further from the truth! The wind has absolutely nothing to do with it.

I assume by water in her ear you mean stuck in her ear canal after going under and not actually behind her ear drum. That would take a pretty powerfull nasal flush from falling to force it thru the eustachian tube into the ear or a parforated ear drum. For water in the canal use a 50/50 mix of rubbing alcohol and white vinegar. The alcohol will displace the water and help dry it while the vinegar acidifies the canal and prevents infection. It should not burn as long as the canal is not inflamed. It it burns make it 70/30 vinegar/alcohol.

Now, this is excellent advice! I might add that the other reason it may burn is canal abrasions that can easily be caused by even gentle q-tip swabbing. One of the most common reasons for repeated episodes of swimmer's ear (otitis externa) is removal of all the ear wax. Wax has a slight acidity to it that prevents both infection and itching. So, keep the cotton swabs out of the ear and follow the advice above with the 50/50 mix of isopropyl alcohol and distilled white vinegar.

Just to clarify, swimmer's ear occurs in the external ear canal. With an intact eardrum water cannot get to the opening of the eustachian tube which connects the middle ear space to the back of the nose. (A perforation or patent tympanostomy tube would allow water to pass from the external auditory canal into the middle ear.)

LouDoc,

Just curious but what do you practice? I am an ENT in metro Kansas City area.

I thought there was a ring of professional advice in your post! I am an ENT it Louisville.

Edited July 29, 2008 by LouDoc

[LS-One]

Will keeping a bottle of the 50/50 mixture (premixed) on the houseboat over the summer cause it to lose it's effectiveness?

[foiler1]

Will keeping a bottle of the 50/50 mixture (premixed) on the houseboat over the summer cause it to lose it's effectiveness?

My son has lots of ear infections. his pediatrician said the same about vinegar/alcohol. it does work but he smells like a garden salad

[bound4er]

Will keeping a bottle of the 50/50 mixture (premixed) on the houseboat over the summer cause it to lose it's effectiveness?

No - as long as the bottle is sealed tight after use.

[LouDoc]

Will keeping a bottle of the 50/50 mixture (premixed) on the houseboat over the summer cause it to lose it's effectiveness?

Should not be a problem!

[mcmalibu]

Thanks for all the replies. I appreciate the help from all of you!

[tj_in_kc]

The best thing you can do to prevent this other than applying the alcohol mixture above is have yourself a good pair of earplugs made.

I perforated my ear-drum wakeboarding last summer. Went to see my ENT doctor (St. Luke's North -- Kansas City, MO). He had an audiologist working in his office that tested my hearing after it had healed back to make sure it was right on and fully healed. Then she filled my ears with a hot waxy type substance that hardened a little after being set. It made a perfect mold of my ears which she sent off to a company that made perfectly fitted ear plugs that i got in about 3 weeks.

Also ordered something called the ear bandit, which also protects the ears from rupture or tearing from impact with the water.

http://www.earband-it.com/

See your board certified Ear Nose and Throat doc and get these things if your wife continues to have problems with her ears or if you are worried about damaging them wakeboarding.

Edited July 30, 2008 by tj_in_kc

[BillFooter]

I recently have taken up scuba diving. Ear problems can be pretty common for divers. The 50/50 white vinegar & rubbing alcohol mixture is what most divers use unless they buy a store bought product which is about the same thing. The rubbing alcohol helps to dry up the water and the vinegar helps to prevent yucky things from growing in the ear canal.

[LouDoc]

See your board certified Ear Nose and Throat doc and get these things if your wife continues to have problems with her ears or if you are worried about damaging them wakeboarding.

Oh, that's music to my ears!

[Hack]

It is actually from the wind blowing into the ear while water is present in the ear. Stop one or the other from happening and you have your solution.

Nothing could be further from the truth! The wind has absolutely nothing to do with it.

An ENT Doctor, well, I stayed in a Holiday Inn last night and I'm sticking to my story.

Good luck with the swimmers ear, looks like lots of good advice here. I'm a former competitive swimmer (college, etc.) so I must have just picked up the wind thing as a wive's tale I guess. Though I did only get swimmers ear when training in outdoor pools? Maybe that was because I was also swimming in the ocean when we were training down South over Christmas break etc.

Anyway, sorry for the errant advice. I hate it when things that aren't fact are given as fact so it bothers me that I did just that. Oh well....

[M3Fan]

Doc's Pro Plugs - Pro Plugs - are the answer to your problems. They are perforated for protection from water impacts. I never leave the platform without them.

[tj_in_kc]

Wow M3Fan, those look like a steal.

I paid about 5 times that much for the ones i ordered. they were custom made though...