Inner Ear Pressure

[hopalong]

Well maybe not Drinking, but since last December after a bout of Sinus infection with clogged ears have had pressure change that at times even caused ringing and a weird feeling like swimmers ear.

Have been to the DR but not a Ear DR, am on anti biotics again and an occasional Decadron shot but damn things keep giving me grief.

Shooting doesn't seem to bother them (left is worse) but the harmonics off the exhast of my Motor Cycle and a few other things can actually be painfull.

Really pisses me off since the Motor cylce gets more than 3 times the MPG as my truck and Gas is going up again

Have deliberately laid off shooting except the club match and testing as a precaution to keep from hearing damage.

Any body else have had similar troubles? What did you do to fix?

Hopalong

[shred]

Had any bouts of nausea? dizziness? I've had on-and-off tinnitus in one ear they're still trying to track down (current suspect; Meniere's disease), but you might want to go by an ENT if it's really annoying. Worst-case you get to check out the cool eye exerciser in the ENG test...

ear problems suck.

[AustinMike]

I feel your pain. I get several sinus infections a year, usually gets into the ears as well. Allergies trigger mine and I take Nasonex daily, supplemented by Claritin to help keep things at bay. Had one bout where one ear was completely clogged and I could barely hear out of it for a couple months. They put me on some steroid pill that time, which seemed to get rid of it. Go see an ENT Dr..

I live with Tinitus (ringing in the years), self-induced from years of rock-n-roll drumming with no hearing protection. It's constant and can actually keep me awake at nights sometimes. Nothing can be done about that, that I know of. It can get worse when the ears are clogged. High blood pressure increases the ring too.

[A-shot]

Man, I'm really sorry to hear that. When my equilibrium feels off-balance, it drives me nuts. I used to scuba dive a lot, I think it messed me up a little bit. Sometimes I feel incredible pressure swimming underwater at shallow depths. I used to have to equalize at ten feet while swimming in a pool, it was painful to do so to. Scuba diving is an amazing experience, but I tend to think of it as reverse sky-diving. And I don't want to jump out of a plane.

[dajarrel]

Sam,

Get on down to see the nearest EENT. Local docs are great but something that hangs on for more than month, IMHO, should be seen by a specialist.

dj

[Nemo]

Sam,

Go see the EENT. The ears could suffer consequences from many other things, from noise-induced damage to sinus or throat infections. The Dr. may have to relieve that pressure mechanically.

Take care of them, no ears, no more motorcycle.

Go see the Dr, TODAY!

[kimel]

Get thee to the ENT ASAP.

I had a similar situation in my right ear. I had a tube put in 18 months ago and problem cleared up almost immediately.

[Brazos SC Shooter]

Do you have any problems with your teeth? I know that sounds weird but my mom had what appeared to be a sinus infections on and off for two years. Nobody, even ENT's could figure out what was wrong or why antibiotics wouldn't get rid of it for good.

She also went to the dentist and they didn't find anything.

Finally after two years, her dentist detected the problem. She had an absessed tooth that was leaking bacteria into her sinus cavity which in turn created the infection. It started as a very small undetectable problem in the root of one tooth. It finally got large enough to detect on X-Rays.

It required a root canal, but it all has gone away now.

Maybe a long shot but you never know.

[uscbigdawg]

Hopalong,

Here's your medical assessment for the day (since I just treated 2 of these this week on clinical rotations):

1 - Can you Valsalva? (pop your ears)

2 - Any loss of equilibrium or dizziness?

3 - Have you recently had a cold, runny nose or allergies?

Not knowing what drugs your doc's have you on, but this recipe has shown to work well:

- Afrin Nasal Spray (2 sprays per day for 3 days MAX)

- Deconomine SR

- Motrin or Naproxen

- Increased hydration

Hope that helped.

Rich

[Steve Anderson]

There are a few anti-tinnitus supplements on the market and they work well...

what did you say?

Pardon?

Huh?

What?

Take a guy who was born with a meningitis hearing loss, but him in a rock band for 10 years, then get him into shooting...what else can we do to him?

Ahh, get that man a motorcycle!

Brilliant.

SA

[hopalong]

Well the pressure went away with the Anti-biotics about the same time.

Ringing is still present, and I do know it is better some days than others depending on Air pressure, cold vs hot ect.

Going to go further on the Ears Tuesday.

Thanks for the info!

Rich, hang in there and God bless you and the rest of our Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen(PC is Airpersons)

Hopalong

[Carmoney]

1 - Can you Valsalva? (pop your ears)

Rich, you'll need to explain this a little more so Sam understands you're not talking about one of those naughty female parts he learned about in sex ed class.

[cking]

eyes ears nose and throat. They all can affect the other. Stay after it. My son had constant ear infections and it disolved the little bones in ear. Then infection went into that spongy material behind ear. They had to mostly remove the ear, scrap out the bony material, make new bone piece and then replace the ear. Not something you want to go through. They got 80% of his hearing back for him.

[hopalong]

Stonger Antibiotics, for 4 weeks. Allergy medicine, and a Decongestant for the Sinuses.

Hope to get this crap GONE !!!!!

Hop

[AustinMike]

Argh... For what it's worth, Nasonex seems to have helped decrease the frequency of sinus/ear infections for me. I use it every day.

[hopalong]

Well,

Pressure seems to be gone or not noticeable, ringing is subsiding but still present.

funny little "click" in the left ear when looking up after looking down..........kind of like something (fluid) moving.

Dr said we'll take the rest of the Rx. and talk about if we need to do anything else.

Better, but not normal.

Hop

[lynn jones]

Better, but not normal.

Hop

when were you ever normal?

[sierra77mk]

I am resurrecting this old thread because this is similar to my current problem.

I feel like I have a pressure in my ears or earplugs in. When I speak, I can hear myself in my head, like f I cover my ears when talking. Years ago I had a cerumen impaction that required irrigating with hydrogen peroxide solution. Doc said it was probaby from wearing earplugs and wax got pushed into the earcanal. I remember how much better I could hear after that.

At my physical a couple months ago, I mentioned this current condition to my doc but he said there was no abnormal wax buildup.

I have the occasional ringing-buzzing but it goes away [mostly].

What bothers me most now is sensitivity to low frequency noises.

A motorcycle or large truck driving by can be sometimes uncomfortable. I live in a townhouse and I hear the neighbors TV more than ever before. I thought it was a new sub-woofer or something but she showed me the same 15 year old TV and she claimed she always listens at the same volume. I run a fan or humidifier to mask some of these kinds of noises now.

What might cause the growing sensitivity to low frequency sounds?

Am I loosing higher frequency and now low noises are prominent?

Should I go to an ENT or an Audiologist first?

Thanks for your suggestions and support.

Edited April 25, 2010 by sierra77mk

[gm iprod]

Sensitivity to low frequency noises is sometime a sign that the high end of your hearing spectrum is suffering some damgae.

I would see both an Audiologist and a ENT specialist, which order is simple, whom ever you can get an opointment for first. Get your General Practicioner to see if he or she can bump you up the queue and of course take a first look examination and pass information on.

My brother has had hearing issues all his life. He has managed it well with plenty of help from the professionals. Which is really important to him as he is a specialist sales person for high end audio gear, and he can't afford to be out of work.

[G-ManBart]

I was getting a couple of sinus infections per year until I started using a daily sinus rinse (Neil Med) every night an hour before bed....no more sinus infections and significant relief from allergies

[Enthusiast]

I'm with G-man on that. My wife got me a Neti Pot a few years ago (she heard about it on Oprah), so of course it sat on a shelf for a while. Flushing out the sinus cavity really helps with the allergies and the ears too. The beauty is it just takes a cup of tap water and a bit of salt, so it's dirt cheap. Try it. You'll like it.

[Jaxshooter]

I had never been bothered by pollen until a couple of years ago. I now use a saline nasal spray available at any pharmacy every morning and night. It really helps.

[Bear23]

Sam,

I currently have the same problem. Recent sinus infection (lasted for a month) led to inner ear infection. I still have a low hum in the left ear.

Start taking Vit b6 b12 and folic acid. The hum or tinnitus is due to some nerve damage from the infection. might take about 3 months to improve.

Note: I did see my ENT friend who gave me a thorough exam. If this is persisting, see an ENT.

[sierra77mk]

I am following up for my sake and all of you too.

In May 2010 I went to my GP and we discussed that perhaps this was due to an unequal pressure in my ears so he proscribed a nasal spray called Fluctonase. That didn't help with congestion or my sensitivity to low frequency sounds.

I went to an ENT and my hearing test showed I have excellent hearing for someone in their 40's.

We discussed this and he had no real suggestions. I too thought Tinnitus was a high pitched ringing and asked my ENT. He said that the practical definition is "any sound that you hear that other people don't".

It more or less went away over the summer months or so I thought.

Now that the colder weather is back and I sleep with the windows closed and no fan, I started to hear a low frequency hum like a washing machine or dishwasher. When it is quiet, I hear this low frequency sound everywhere in the house. Garage, bedroom, basement. I still do not know 100% if this is in my head or ambient noise from the neighborhood transmitted into the walls. (I live about 1/2 mile from a 4 lane highway and often hear the traffic).

I sat in the car in the garage with all the windows up and still hear it. I have gone around the house listening to the walls [Literally!] and I cannot find a vibration source. The basement should be the quietest place but there is just as much "sound" there as on the 2nd floor. I can only sleep with a fan on now. The only time/place I do not hear this sound is when I'm in the kitchen and the refrigerator is running.

I tried sleeping with earplugs in but I hear the noise (although a little different) when I have plugs in. This kid of makes me think it is my hearing and not a true sound source. So now the anxiety builds every night when I sleep. Will I be able to sleep? Will I hear the sound...

I am trying a pill called "LIPO-FLAVONOID PLUS" which is "#1 Dr. Recommended... the ONLY product clinically proven to improve circulation in the inner ear..." My mom said it helped her with a similar problem when trying to sleep.

I'll report again in a few weeks months on success or failure.

[hopalong]

I'll reply to my own thread.

The "ringing" is stil there, and always will be, what we figure. Sierra, to tell if it is you or your house. Go back to the ENT, and sit in his sound booth or patient room with all the doors closed. IF you still hear the HUM it is you, and simply keep the fan on in the room for some "White noise" to help sleep.

I have had small bouts with Sinus clogging more often than ever before the "Sinus infection" that caused the ring. they usually aggrivate me for about a week or more. until I go get a roseffrin and Decadron shot in the butt. That usually gets the job done.

Good luck with your "trouble" Keep us informed please.

HOP