to ask about sudden hearing loss?

[stopetheroses]

I was literally sitting talking to someone yesterday when it felt as if the volume was suddenly turned down on the hearing in one of my ears. I presumed a bit of wax or something had suddenly blocked it but I've tried saline nasal rinse, gently blowing, drops of olive oil etc and nothing has changed.
I have no history of hearing or ear problems, no recent cold or infection or illness. I did have some mild vertigo last weekend that went away after a day.
I have a very slight shushing sound on the affected side but no tinnitus as such. I have a very slight sense of vertigo again today but very mild.
I'm not deaf on the affected side, just reduced more muffled hearing.
Has anyone had this and are there any other things I can try?

Annoyingly, I had a GP appointment yesterday (about a routine totally unrelated thing) but this didn't happen until later. It's frustrating as I could have asked them to look at it. You nearly have to sleep with someone to get an appointment around here.

See your GP. Sudden hearing loss might indicate other issues. My GP sent me for an MRI. Thankfully nothing found.
Might just be wax which is too hard to remove and might need intervention? See your Dr or Nurse. Don’t ignore it.

Thank you. I did look at Dr Google and there was all kinds of scary stuff but that seems to be how the internet is. I'm working off the assumption that it's just a bit of wax. It's very hard to get any kind of medical appointment right now but if it doesn't clear up in a few days I will try.

Make an appointment with the GP urgently. This needs to be reviewed as soon as possible. Hopefully it's nothing sinister but it needs to be checked.

Call 111 as per guidelines in red here

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/hearing-loss/

I have a one sided hearing loss. I was told at the ENT dept that if you suddenly lose hearing, as you have described, it is an emergency. Steroids can be given but to be effective they need to be taken very soon after the event. Please call 111 urgently

You will want to get that checked out asap, as some changes in hearing can be permanent.

Edit: yes, exactly what @hannahwaddinghamsbiceps said. I have had a somewhat similar experience, too, though I was lucky and got steroids right away.

Thank you both for replying. I am out just now but will call later this evening when I’m home. I just feel kind of ridiculous because maybe it’s just a bit of wax. The a&e nearest to me is so insanely busy with incredibly long waits. I’ve only lost part of the hearing rather than all of it which makes me think it may not be too serious. @madeinmanc did you see your GP and get steroids that way?

I had this a few weeks ago and felt off and a bit dizzy, turns out it was impacted ear wax, DS has a little camera as he cleans his own ears so had a peek. Spec savers sorted it out for £55 in total and that was two appointments two weeks apart after using bicarbonate of soda olive oil ear drops for two weeks. If no wax was removed by them it would have been £25.

Straight to A&E for potential steroids. If you leave it too long it could be irreversible if it's sensorineural hearing loss (which you won't know unless you get checked out asap)

No I saw a private ENT.

@stopetheroses I’ve just seen this. Did you get this seen to or did your hearing return to normal? If not, you’re still in the two-week window for high-dose steroids to possibly work if the loss is sensorineural (as opposed to conductive), which can be permanent.

Thanks so much for checking in! It actually returned to normal so it seems it was some kind of blockage maybe fluid/ sinus issue. I had it looked at and there was no wax in there. The level of hearing loss wasn’t huge so I was happy to wait a while and it has improved.

Pleased to hear it! 😊 Recently-ish I had sudden profound loss in one ear that unfortunately turned out to be permanent. That’s why I’m so hot on this and don’t want others to go through similar (and have turned into the ear police!)

@TheyreStillGoingWithThemPlumsKerr do you mind me asking what caused your hearing loss. I had 1 sided hearing loss a few months ago and was very surprised to have it treated as an emergency (for me it was caused by an outer ear infection plus ear wax). I never found out what it was that they were worried it might be.

It’s great that you’re raising awareness. I had no idea that sudden hearing loss can be so serious.

@DisquietintheRanks They don’t know! Apparently with most cases they don’t. You have an MRI to rule out anything serious (mainly acoustic neuroma or vascular event, I think) and bloods to check for autoimmune. They think it may have been a virus that attacked the inner ear in my case (though I had no typical symptoms of a viral infection). But sudden loss is a medical emergency regardless, as very prompt steroids can reverse the damage (inflammation) in some instances so it doesn’t lead to permanent loss

Sudden sensorineural hearing loss is one of the ENT emergencies, which should really be assessed same day for consideration of steroids as can be permanent.

https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/sudden-deafness#:~:text=Sudden%20sensorineural%20(%E2%80%9Cinner%20ear%E2%80%9D,frequently%20affects%20only%20one%20ear.

Just in case anyone comes across this thread in future and so knows to push the GP receptionist for same day review for sudden onset hearing loss.

Glad to hear you're doing better though OP!