Tinnitus and hearing loss Diving, swimming, flying - what should be considered?

Anyone who suffers from tinnitus needs "holidays for the ears", as the saying goes. That's why tinnitus patients should be mindful of their hearing, especially when they're on vacation - not just when they're flying, but also when swimming and diving.

It's summertime - many are looking forward to the much-anticipated annual vacation and fly to their dream destination by plane. But more and more people also complain that they perceive a disturbing noise in the ear after a flight. What to do? With high probability, these people have suffered a pressure trauma on landing - also called barotrauma. A slight inner ear damage may have been left behind. As a rule, however, the cure prognosis is very good - especially among young people. To ensure that this does not happen again, the specialists at the Tinnitus Center at the Berlin Charité advise to use a decongestant nasal spray before the start of the next flight and before reducing the altitude, thus aerating the middle ear.

Diving or flying: What should Tinitus patients pay attention to? Image: Axel Kock - fotolia

By the way: earache is usually caused by pressure changes when flying. The higher the plane climbs, the lower the air pressure. This change creates overpressure in the middle ear, which is usually perceived as unpleasant "cracking". Especially during takeoff and landing, it helps to balance this pressure with yawning or chewing gum chewing. Alternatively, you can also hold your nose and exhale with your mouth closed, as this air can be released from the middle ear. If problems occur after a flight over a longer period of time, however, an ENT specialist should be consulted.

Pressure equalization when flying. Picture: Henrie-fotolia

Swimming and diving do not have to be a problem for tinnitus patients
Now that it is warm in many areas, swimming pools, bathing lakes and the sea are very popular with swimmers of all ages. Whether this represents a danger to tinnitus sufferers depends on whether their eardrums are intact and they have neither problems with the pressure balance of the middle ear nor an increased willingness to infect. If this is not the case, swimming is fine. With regard to the posture of the cervical spine, however, according to the expert advice backstroke is preferable to breaststroke.

Caution should also be exercised when diving: despite pressure equalization, some have a persistent pressure sensation and a low-pitched noise after diving - these can be signs of a so-called barotrauma. In this case, the tinnitus experts advise you to quickly visit an ENT specialist for a detailed examination of the ears and to exclude such a barotrauma. Because the latter may need to be treated - even if the hearing itself remains unaffected.

About the German Tinnitus Foundation Charité
The German Tinnitus Foundation Charité was established in August 2011 as a charitable foundation under civil law. Convinced that tinnitus and hearing disorders need to be treated in the best possible way, and that at the same time each individual can do a great deal to protect themselves, the Foundation has set itself the following tasks: research funding, international science communication and prevention and education. The Foundation carries out its tasks within its financial resources and with partners through the financing of research projects, through international congresses, through education campaigns on the risks of noise and stress, by awarding prizes and developing preventive measures. A special target group of prevention work is young people.