Surfer's ear, the cold water factor and more...
The European Association of Surfing Doctors (EASD) motto is: “Keeping the Surfer Healthy and Safe”.
So, check out this informative case study from Surfing Medicine, The Journal of our US counterpart, the Surfer’s Medical Association(SMA) about Surfer’s ear.
External Auditory Exostosis/Exostoses, or “Surfer’s Ear”, are generally painless, benign, maladies that do not require surgical intervention. Progressive growth leads to increasing external auditory canal obstruction, conductive hearing loss, and possible frequent episodes of otitis externa (i.e. infection). Whilst the cause of surfer’s ear, has yet to be conclusively established, prevailing clinical consensus accepts cold water exposure as an initiation factor.