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Tinnitus and Deafness - Help

15 replies

jpbee · 15/11/2021 08:08

I'm hoping there are some mumsnetters with experiences of Tinnitus who can support.
My DH age 37 has suffered with moderate tinnitus for a few years now. He has had hearing checks and been assured his hearing is still fine and he hasn't noticed any change in his hearing. Recently his tinnitus has escalated but still no hearing change, until this morning when he has woken up deaf in one ear and has a very high pitched loud ringing in that ear, much worse than it was before the deafness. I don't feel like this is typical of tinnitus which I have read does not usually cause deafness and I assume if it does it would be gradual rather than overnight.
He doesn't seem keen on seeking help as he assumes he will be just told it is his tinnitus and to get on with it, since there is no treatment. I'm concerned that it is something else which may even be unrelated to the his previous issues. WWYD?

OP posts:
Starrr123 · 15/11/2021 21:26

@jpbee hi!!!
Sorry to gear that! I have had this for 2 weeks now !!!! Are hes ears popping and cracking? Or just the ringing and slight loss? X

nannybeach · 15/11/2021 21:37

Tinnitus doesn't cause deafness,but often accompanies it
I've had tinnitus in my left ear for 3 years following a virus.High pitch whistle all the time. Went to GP about something else, mentioned it,he said it could be a sign of an accustic neuroma. Fast scans etc NAD, consultant said I had a degree of hearing loss consistent with age (now 71) he asked if I wanted CBT or similar therapy. Said I could cope with it. Sometimes, I get it so loudly in my right ear,I am unable to hear or have a conversation. This doesn't happen often thankfully,it can last hours or a few days. I did a phone hearing test and passed that. I think if it stays like that,he should speak to a GP

Starrr123 · 15/11/2021 21:57

@nannybeach somyour tinnutis doesnt last every single day? You just get flare ups?
Do you ears fee full with it and popping ? Xx

Elieza · 15/11/2021 22:04

Try acupuncture. It can sort tinnitus.

oystercatcher5 · 15/11/2021 22:11

I'm like @nannybeach - tinnitus and moderate/severe deafness in my left ear.

I've had hearing tests to confirm and have had an NHS hearing aid fitted which helps a lot in the pub and watching tv.

I will have an MRI sometime in the next 6-8 months looking for an acoustic neuroma. I'd rather know if I do have one and they can keep an eye on it.

Nothing can be done about the tinnitus but the hearing aid does make it less dominant iykwim and I would recommend he tries this Smile

mineofuselessinformation · 15/11/2021 22:23

@Elieza, could you point me to the research that says this? I'm wondering why the NHS don't use it if that's the case.....Hmm
I have tinnitus and would love to find an actual, real solution.

SwedishEdith · 15/11/2021 22:27

Sudden deafness in one ear needs to be treated immediately. He needs to get a GP appointment tomorrow and may be prescribed steroids but it needs investigating. It should be taken very seriously by his GP.

www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/sudden-deafness

nannybeach · 15/11/2021 22:46

Starrr123,no it doesn't come and go I said I've had tinnitus for 3 years permanently in my left ear following a virus,it sometimes pops and clicks, it always a high pitched whistle. It's occasional in I right ear

Elieza · 16/11/2021 09:21

@mineofuselessinformation

If you google it comes up. One study reports 60-80% improvement rate. I got mine fixed on one session. I’m no good at posting links on this ancient phone sorry!

There are many things that acupuncture can help resolve. The problem is that because it’s eastern medicine our western gps are not trained in it.

Pharma companies do not make any money out of it as there are no profitable drugs to be sold, so bigger trials are not done by them. So who’s going to pay for the trials. Nobody has the resources. Hence not many trials done.

They use acupuncture in Scotland on the nhs for varicose veins. You get half a dozen treatments. I only know that because a relative went. She got some benefit but the person delivering it would be a doctor who has had an introductory course. Not an acupuncturist who works with it day in day out and has a wide breadth of knowledge and experience.

So the benefits people get from it will be proportionate to the knowledge of the therapist. So it could actually give the treatment a bad name and appear less beneficial than other pharma treatments!

It’s all to do with nhs funding and lack of research and fear of trying other solutions when pharma ones have been helpful.

I’m china they do open heart surgery with no anaesthetic. Just acupuncture needles. Granted they have an electrical current through them. But the patient is totally awake. That’s how powerful acupuncture can be when used properly by an experienced therapist. Yet over here it’s considered ‘woo’. Despite it being proved in many studies to not be woo.

I find it all very frustrating as I’ve had lots of benefit from it for over a decade without taking hormones or pills that give side effects that the nhs would have prescribed. I just wish it was on the nhs. It’s £50-£60 where I am. There is only one professional body who also provides insurance. I just wish it would speak to the nhs and become a registered therapy or whatever has to be done in order that more people can benefit from it’s wonders.

Starrr123 · 16/11/2021 09:56

@Elieza so your tinnitus went after one sessio? I was thinking about this … xxx

jpbee · 16/11/2021 10:18

@Starrr123 I'm sorry you are struggling with it too. I feel so bad for him. He said it is just the ringing and loss, although he mentioned his ears actually feel sore too. I hope yours improves soon and doesn't become a permanent issue.

OP posts:
jpbee · 16/11/2021 10:20

@nannybeach That's good to know. He is now saying he doesn't think he did go deaf as such but that the sheer noise of the ringing made it feel like he was deaf in that ear. By chance he ended up seeing a doctor yesterday about something else and brought up the ear issue, they looked inside his ear and couldn't see anything concerning then left it at that.

OP posts:
jpbee · 16/11/2021 10:21

@Elieza Thank you for the tip, do you have personal experience of this working, and how many sessions were needed?

OP posts:
nannybeach · 16/11/2021 13:07

As a nurse of over 40 years,I've never heard of acupuncture for varicose veins, can't see how that would work
The NHS do sometimes use it. I have a clinic I've been going to over 30 years,had acupuncture for both period pain, and sinusitis. Not everyones tinnitus lasts for ever. Its damage to the little hairs inside the ear. I don't see how acupuncture would help that. There has never been a cure for the chronic type. I will certainly ask my acupuncturist and let you know what she says. My remedy (once you have been checked by Dr/consultant/ audiologist is white noise at night,I listen to an old fashioned regular alarm clock ticking.

astrowars · 16/11/2021 22:15

This is a medical emergency and he needs to contact ent tomorrow. It happened to me in the summer and I was told I should have phoned 111. Your husband needs to act tomorrow and get immediate treatment. I've had all sorts of treatment and I'm now waiting for a hearing aid, and there was nothing visible when I had an ear examination.

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