Deep Scuba Diving and Decrease in Tinnitus: The Effect of Nitrogen

As my pseudo suggests, I'm a seasoned scuba diver, although my T is not related at all. I dive deep air in the 40-60m area (once 80m) (130/200/260 ft) with oxygen mix for decompression. (helium is too expensive here to replace a fraction of nitrogen = trimix).

I noticed many times when I surfaced, my T was barely noticeable, it had simply "fadded" to a 0.5/1.

I was told it was surely related to the relaxing effect of scuba diving... One-of-those-who-do-not-have-T-explaination.

I recalled my diving instructor "physiology of diving" course. Scuba divers know narcosis, also called "Martini cocktail effect". The deeper you go, the higher partial pressure of nitrogen becomes (Air: 80% x 6 bar @ 50m = 4.8 bars).

Oxygen is metabolized, it does not accumulate like nitrogen into your boby (mainly in fat), but is also toxic from 1.6 bar and beyond. Decompression time allows you to softly eliminate nitrogen from your boby throughout the lungs.

Nitrogen fixes on neurons (the myelin to be precised, if I recall) and slows down their activity. This was to me a basic explaination of my T "easing". I was surprisingly happy when I found this article of a French neurophysiologist who demonstrates that scuba diving can be addictive (it is). Sorry it is in French but I've translated the most interesting part (google translation is your friend for the remaing part of the article):

"Nitrogen acts on the GABA receptors of dopaminergic neurons, which increases their inhibition. In other words, the presence of nitrogen increases the inhibitory effects of GABA. These neurons thus release less dopamine. This neurotransmitter has many actions on some other neurons, for example glutamate neurons."

I went to scuba divers forums and some of them reported the same experience. A kind of self-HBOT...

 

hello , thanks for the information this is very intersting . Do you have the source article , like the original one ?

thank you very much !!

 

It was a simplified article in a scuba review but I think the original paper should be here:
https://www.researchgate.net/public...is_of_inert_gas_narcosis_and_pressure_effects
His papers can be found here (English):
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jean-Claude_Rostain/publications
A lot to read!

 

I did HBOT. It didn't help me that much but I have noise induced T. If you have head trauma induced T HBOT should be more useful. It also has been used for concussion related syptoms like migraines etc.

 

I was going to joke about finally hearing silence after breathing in pure nitrogen, but I'd better not.

 

You'd better not, hypoxy starts at PpO2 < 0.16 bar. I actually did HBOT (10 sessions @ 2.5 bar, 15 m equivalent), it managed to soften T (from eeeeeeeeee to ssssssssssssssh). Level was identical.

 

Im working in the field now , of HBOT and have access to the chambers . In my humble opinion I think more sessions can lead to a better result in more time . Does anybody know of a study , for example doing 2 seesions weekly 6-8 months or one ear ??

Are you planning more session DiveMaster ?

 

Please , can you describe at how many ATAs where your sessions ?

 

I did between 2-2.5 atms. I did 3 sessions without 100% 02 and 8 sessions with 100% 02.

 

For me it may have very very slightly helped but it was within the margin of variability. I couldn't do more cause the sessions cost $150 a pop.

 

Do you mean the frequency was lowered? How long after acquiring tinnitus did you do HBOT?

 

Very expensive , in the chamber here they are charging like USD 60 about 100minutes , we use it primarily for diabetes complications , but we have another "experimental one" that we go inside near the medical center , and another little one that its for two patients . This one attached is the big one at the medical center, build completely here in Chile Im going every saturday to the chamber but I would like to know what will happen to the T if going almost all days . The person who build it , says he goes every day into it , hes got more than 6000 sessions , he´s a really good guy and knows a lot , but he is not from the medical field , im really amazed about how he could understand all of this , according to his experience he was near liver failure and needed a liver transplant about 10 years ago , so he went everyday into the chamber and make excercice in it , now we see his liver profile and its normal , and scanners from liver also . I do not know if all that sessions could help T , or inner ear problems , but I will do my best to go inside as many times as possible and let know anything .

 

Is it noisy inside ?

 

I used a one-person chamber HBOT - it was noisy. However, when they reduced the rate of flow of oxygen, it got a little better. My reactive T got louder after it.

 

@tinnitube : no more sessions planned, useless after 3 year. The med team told me it could help healing (not completely) before 3 months but I don't know. Also the French health care takes the sessions in charge 100% (yep, free), so you need good reasons to go for more sessions (try to convince the clinic chief MD!!!).

@Alue : I started after 4 months. Actually I think HBOT flattened my T frequency making it more bearable. After each session I could barely hear it for 2 hours, hélas! Now still good and bad days...

 

Where did you do it ? (i'm in france, calais), acoustic trauma 3 weeks ago.

 

Man, I regret not trying it now. Although most people don't seem to benefit from HBOT, maybe you are one of the lucky ones.

 

Maybe it is just a certain type of tinnitus where this helps.

 

@flobo: Nice (06), CHU Pasteur. Le caisson le plus proche de Calais est au CHRU de Lille.
@jer: acoustic trauma... probably accelerates inner ear healing, I'm not sure if it is correlated to T improvement...