Temporal bone pathology in scuba diving deaths.

Scuba diving has long been associated with otologic injuries; however, little is known about temporal bone pathology in diving-related deaths. We examined 18 temporal bones from 11 divers who died, primarily from complications of rapid ascent. Bleeding into the middle ear and mastoid air cells was nearly universal. Inner ear damage included hemorrhage around Reissner's membrane and the round window membrane and rupture of the utricle and saccule. Most of the observed inner ear damage was not surgically treatable.