Wikiposts
Search
Medical & Health News and debate about medical and health issues as they relate to aircrews and aviation. Any information gleaned from this forum MUST be backed up by consulting your state-registered health professional or AME. Due to advertising legislation in various jurisdictions, endorsements of individual practitioners is not permitted.

Ear grommets??

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 9th Sep 2007, 21:14
  #1 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: UK
Posts: 438
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Ear grommets??

There is an old post about this, but I wanted to ask a specific question.

On occasions I have trouble popping my ears. I was consdering getting grommets installed in the ear drums to help equalise the pressure but I go through 4 pressurisation cycles a day and I understand they can quickly fall out.

Is there anybody who has tried them and if so how long did they stay in? Were they effective and if they did fall out could / did you get them re-inserted?

I don't really want to go down this route but it seems like a good solution.

Any experiences would be useful...
Hufty is offline  
Old 10th Sep 2007, 13:18
  #2 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: gone surfin'
Age: 59
Posts: 2,333
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Interesting question, not heard of their use in pilots, only in children with glue ear.

Anecdote experience suggests that there use in children is near to useless, and it would appear that the evidence is now beginning to support this.

Last edited by gingernut; 10th Sep 2007 at 13:32.
gingernut is offline  
Old 10th Sep 2007, 16:00
  #3 (permalink)  
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Twickenham, home of rugby
Posts: 7,435
Received 292 Likes on 186 Posts
Anecdote experience suggests that there use in children is near to useless, and it would appear that the evidence is now beginning to support this.
Curious - not my experience at all!

My younger son had grommets installed at 3 (or 4, I can't remember) because of glue ear.

The results were dramatic - his hearing (and speech) improved enormously - literally overnight. He found it almost traumatic to go from a quite "isolated" auditory environment to coping with the full-on sounds of urban living in the 21st century!

That's my anecdotal evidence, anyway.

I have no idea about their use in adults, or with pressurisation cycles. Doubtless a GP or ENT specialist would have more to say!

SD
Saab Dastard is offline  
Old 10th Sep 2007, 16:14
  #4 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: gone surfin'
Age: 59
Posts: 2,333
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Fair enough comment, as ever in medicine, never say never, and never say always.

Perhaps I should have said that the benefits are unclear.

When we look at the scientific studies, the benefits of grommet insertion, do not always outweigh the risks. The big study was here http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/en...886&query_hl=1



Glad to hear that your son is ok though.

Last edited by gingernut; 10th Sep 2007 at 16:56.
gingernut is offline  
Old 10th Sep 2007, 19:49
  #5 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Kettering
Age: 49
Posts: 171
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
If your problem is caused by a chronically blocked Eustacian Tube then in theory a grommet would cure the problem overnight. There are a number of types of grommet on the market. There is at least one called a Permavent or something similar which is less likely to fall out. If you haven't already, you need to chat to an ENT specialist with an interest in aviation to get some good advice.

That said, grommets are easy to insert and replace as far as I can tell (from anaesthetising countless children for the procedure, it takes about 5-10 minutes per ear with a good surgeon and the punter wakes up pretty much pain free albeit things often sound a bit loud!)
Bob the Doc is offline  
Old 10th Sep 2007, 19:52
  #6 (permalink)  
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Twickenham, home of rugby
Posts: 7,435
Received 292 Likes on 186 Posts
Agree about risk / benefit - this was not the first option, rather the last, and considerable discussion / soul-searching went into the the decision to go ahead.

We are indeed fortunate that everything turned out uniformly for the best!



Noisily,

SD
Saab Dastard is offline  
Old 25th Sep 2007, 16:49
  #7 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: london
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Here's some advice about glue ear:

http://www.washeswhiter.com/wwglueear.php
mancroft is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off



Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.