deaf in one, 60% left in other, have problems - Hearing Disorders Message Board

bigblock73 · 06-18-2003, 09:46 PM

Hi everyone, My name is Jeff...I am new here and badly need any and all help I can get. I have searched the forum for a problem similar to mine but did not have any luck, so hear it goes (no pun intended).

Heres my story...

I am completely deaf in my right ear and have roughly 60% of my hearing left in my left ear (I have a HF loss). I had many ear infections growing up (along with surgeries) and the Dr's are unsure if I lost my hearing due to that or if I was born that way.

Over the past ten years or so my hearing has fluctuated in my left ear on a somewhat regular basis. At first the Dr's would put me on Prednisone, that would help, but it was not the cure since thay would continue to fluctuate once the medication stopped. I have also been to an Arthritis clinic (ENT reccommendation) to "posibly" treat me for an auto-immune deficiency (sp?), I was put on Methotrexate there...that didn't seem to work so I stopped going. I have seen many ENT doctors but none seem to have any answers.

I honestly have no clue to what is happening but I THINK it is related to strenous activities since it SEEMS to happen shortly after I "push" myself physically at times. I have heard that head trauma can cause ear problems and shortly before all this started happening I broke my nose severly playing base ball (ball off bat into my face). Could that be causing this?

My main reason for posting here is I am out of ideas and at the end of my emotional rope. I am only 29 and this is completely destroying my life. If anyone has any ideas i would really appreciate hearing them!

Thanks from the bottom of my heart.

...Jeff

mlgable · 06-19-2003, 07:31 AM

I am not sure what you are really looking for here. You have had a known loss for years and it fluctuates. Since they are unable to find a specific thing to treat it then why not get a hearing aid if it is recommended and get on with your life and enjoy what hearing you do have left. I have been hearing impaired since I was a kid d/t excess fluid in my ears as a result of the measles. Antibiotics and surgeries did not relieve it so I have worn aids for years. I have also had surgery to replace the bones in my right ear twice as an adult that worked well at first but then stopped working. Needless to say my life goes on and I live it to the fullest and I think this is what you need to do.

bigblock73 · 06-19-2003, 03:23 PM

Thanks for your reply. What I am looking for is a reason my ear is doing this. When I feel 100% I can hear very well, but whenever I exurt myself it drops way down and takes days/weeks for it to come back. If this happened every so often I guess I wouldn't mind...but it happens just as soon as it gets better...it is a never ending cycle. I am just looking for answers/causes/ideas on how to stop what is happening and have a normal and stable life. A hearing aid would help, but it will still keep on doing what it is doing. I would also be happy just knowing what is going on, a cure would be nice, but not knowing is driving me nuts as well.

...Jeff

hbep · 06-19-2003, 04:52 PM

Hi Jeff,

You've probably seen a couple of posts on this board mentioning tempero mandibular joint disorder. The only reason I mention this is because of the blow to the nose/face and also that you mention it comes on after activity which could imply a muscular component to the fluctuations in hearing in one ear.

Then again, I am thrown by the fact that you had multiple infections/surgeries as a child which seems to point heavily in that direction.

Do you have any other physical symptoms in your jaw/neck/face/back, other than the hearing loss? Often symptoms that seem unrelated to your ears can be a big pointer as to what is going on.

bigblock73 · 06-19-2003, 07:36 PM

hbep, thanks for chiming in.

Yes, I had many problems as a child, but as you well know children are hard to diagnos and often times don't tell you when something is bothering them until it is too late.

I'll make a long story short...

When I turned 16 (13 years ago) I got a job at a large retailer as a stock boy. I worked my butt off for almost two years and in doing so was very active and lifted alot of things. If my memory serves me correct, after I broke my nose when I was 17/18 I started having these hearing fluctuation episodes. The Dr's didn't know why so they put me on heavy doses of Prednisone. Well after years of this I had enough and so did the doctor. He (the doc) then referred me to a Arthritis doctor who weaned me off that horrible drug and put me on Methotrexate to treat what he was speculating was an auto-immune problem. Well it got me off the prednisone and my hearing stabilized somewhat, but I still had occasional episodes. Well after about two years of being on this medication I quit going to the Dr and quit taking the drugs...and I was the same as i was for two more years as I was when i was on the methotrexate. Now about a year ago or so the episodes seemed to be happening more frequently and as of late they have been getting worse and staying around longer.

I just don't know what to do.

Today I called up my ENT and spoke with the nurse who then spoke with the doctor. The nurse called back and the doctor put me on a small dose of Prednisone (7 day) and scheduled me to come in on the 30th of June. His explaination was i might have a swollen inner ear which usually provokes and infection.

Hopefully the medicine will help and get me to the 30th. Bu this is a "band-aid" fix in my eyes and doesn't solve the main problem...just hides it temporarily.

As far as other conditions go, today my jaw feels like I have been grinding my teeth all day long...but I do not normally feel this way. My back is fine as well as everything else.

Could it be something to do with my eyes or teeth? I know it sounds crazy but I have heard of stranger things.

Oh, I also saw a chiropractor on Monday and was tested for food allergies (already saw a regular allergist one week prior and everything came back negative). Dairy, MSG, and nutrisweet all came back positive...so i am on a three week diet from the three things...trying to see if they could be causing all this.

Thanks for listening everyone, please chime in if you have ANY ideas...I greatly appreciate any and all input.

...Jeff