Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob Impact
To update this, I just got back from the ENT doctor and this is what I was told:
My left ear physically looks OK, they did a pressure test and everything responded normally, but my hearing is "greatly" diminished for low and high frequencies, along with the Tinnitus in that ear. They ordered up a group of tests for Friday to test the auditory nerve and my brain stem, so the answer to my previous question appears to be "not very"
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Bob:
sorry for the delay in my response to you. I would have wasted time having you work on equalizing the pressure in your ear had I seen your original post, so perhaps it was for the best.
To review, you have a fullness in one ear, with a buzzing sound (tinnitus), and decreased hearing in that ear.
Ok, this is just a shot in the dark, but there is this thing called Meniere's disease, and the symptoms include fullness, tinnitus, and hearing loss, generally in one ear. It's caused by an increase in the fluid volume of the inner ear. The one symptom you didn't mention, however, was vertigo (room spinning)...most but not all meniere's patients have this symptom as well.
If you do have meniere's disease, know you are in good company. Alan Shepard, the first American in space had Meniere's...it kept him from flying for many years
until he was cured by some fancy schmancy surgery that allowed him to FLY TO THE MOON AND BACK. There are other things it could be, some benign, some less so, but if you have Meniere's, it's treatable through a variety of methods (one of which is simply taking a drug called HYDROCHLOROTHIAZIDE, which is a diuretic that costs about $4/month).
Good luck and let us know how it all turns out ok?
your friend,
Steve