Elizabeth, sorry Im not sure if the hole in your eardrum would be something that would be affected by HBO. When going 'down' you must clear your ears so they pop or it could cause them to rupture. By having tubes in your ears that is a tiny hole to allow air to go in there so they wont 'pop' when going 'down'. Sorry, its a little hard to explain. When I say going "down' that means when the technician is slowly building the pressure in the tank its similar to how many feet you go down under water. If you cant clear your ears there is significant pain which is why many places insist on having tube put in to avoid any possibility for any problems with clearing your ears. Having that hole could actually be a benefit for when you do HBO as it is doing the same thing as a tube would be doing by allowing air to get in there. Best people to ask would probably be the doctor or technician at the HBO facility.