A system for providing a flooded environment within an ear during a surgical procedure through an ear canal with the ear extending from a head of a patient and including an auricle defining an opening into the ear canal, said system comprising: a housing adapted to be coupled to the head of the patient and comprising a lateral aspect defining an opening sized to receive the auricle of the ear, and a superior aspect coupled to said lateral aspect to define a fluid reservoir volume between said lateral and superior aspects, and an access opening within said superior aspect and in fluid communication with said fluid reservoir volume with said access opening sized to receive one or more surgical instruments; an irrigation port in communication with the fluid reservoir volume and adapted to be coupled to an irrigation line in fluid communication with an irrigation pump and a fluid source ; and a sealing surface adapted to be positioned in abutting relationship with the head about the auricle to provide a fluid-tight seal as said housing surrounds the auricle and said fluid reservoir volume maintains a volume of the fluid within the ear canal during the surgical procedure, characterized in that one or more sensors are coupled to the housing to detect the absence or presence of the fluid, wherein the sensors are configured to transmit a fluid level signal to a controller which in turn operates the irrigation pump based on the fluid level signal to adjust or maintain the volume of the fluid within the ear canal during the surgical procedure; wherein, in use, the access opening of the housing is open to a surrounding ambient environment, exposing the flooded environment to surrounding atmospheric pressure at a surface of the fluid, and allowing excess pressure to escape the ear. a housing adapted to be coupled to the head of the patient and comprising a lateral aspect defining an opening sized to receive the auricle of the ear, and a superior aspect coupled to said lateral aspect to define a fluid reservoir volume between said lateral and superior aspects, and an access opening within said superior aspect and in fluid communication with said fluid reservoir volume with said access opening sized to receive one or more surgical instruments; an irrigation port in communication with the fluid reservoir volume and adapted to be coupled to an irrigation line in fluid communication with an irrigation pump and a fluid source ; and a sealing surface adapted to be positioned in abutting relationship with the head about the auricle to provide a fluid-tight seal as said housing surrounds the auricle and said fluid reservoir volume maintains a volume of the fluid within the ear canal during the surgical procedure, characterized in that one or more sensors are coupled to the housing to detect the absence or presence of the fluid, wherein the sensors are configured to transmit a fluid level signal to a controller which in turn operates the irrigation pump based on the fluid level signal to adjust or maintain the volume of the fluid within the ear canal during the surgical procedure; wherein, in use, the access opening of the housing is open to a surrounding ambient environment, exposing the flooded environment to surrounding atmospheric pressure at a surface of the fluid, and allowing excess pressure to escape the ear. <EOS>