Scubapro Pro Ear 2000 - Ear Protection Dive Mask

During my childhood I was often affected by ear infections. When I started to free dive and later scuba dive, my ears were a weak point. When I went on dive trip to Palau in 2014, my ears were subjected to the water pressure during 3 – 4 dives a day. During the last dive I had difficulty to equalize the pressure in my ears and heard strange sounds. I felt no pain so I also continued diving in the Philippines the following week. The first dive was on a wreck that lay in 30 meters of water. I had no problems during the actual dive but during the ascension and at the 5 meter safety stop, I had a strange feeling in my right ear. My dive mate swam to me and pointed to it. Air was bubbling out. I felt no discomfort but when the dive guide saw the bubbles he immediately interrupted the dive. At the surface he said that my mucous membrane was broken. It did not hurt but he was determined that there would be no more dives for me.

As soon as I got home I contacted an ear specialist who confirmed that I had burst the mucous membrane. I waited for three months and then took a test dive in a swimming pool to see if my ears were ok. I immediately knew something was wrong as I could not pressure equalize. I contacted the ear specialist again and he prescribed medication and nasal spray.

This medication worked well for me until this autumn when I dived at the Azores. Before leaving I took a second opinion from another ear specialist who said that the spray could be dangerous and that I should only use oil. I followed his advice. During the last dive of the trip I began to feel uncomfortable as I developed a hearing impairment in my right ear again.

When I returned home I contacted my regular ear specialist and this time he told me that there was an infection in both ears and a small hole in the right ear drum. We also discussed the choice of spray. Apparently spraying oil in the ears is no use at all, on the contrary, the oil traps water in the ear canal and if the ear canal is constantly moist it often leads to an infection.

The last time I had ear problems it took 3 months before I could start diving again and now I only had 2 months to go before I planned to dive in the Philippines again. I visited the ear specialist every week, and changed medication but would there be enough time for my ears to recover?

The healing process went in the right direction even though it took time. I stopped doing all workouts in order not to risk anything. Two weeks before traveling I received good news in that my infection had gone and the hole in my right ear drum had healed. I was really pleased to hear this news.

In my luggage this time I carried a Scuba Pro Ear 2000 Mask. (A face mask with caps, to protect the ears from water). Would it be a solution for my ear problems? I tested the mask at different depths. During the first dive, the dive computer showed 22 meters and during the descent I had not pressurized once, which was something I always had to do with my old mask. There was also no water in my ear canals to push against the ear drums.

Using Pro Ear 2000 Mask has been a game changer for me!

Text & Photo Credit: Tomas Jansson