Pulsatile Tinnitus and Hypertension

[StCarlyon]

Hello, I just developed pulsatile tinnitus about a month ago. At first I noticed it in the evening while sitting at my laptop working. It was a whooshing sound like an ultrasound of a heartbeat. When I was pregnant a year ago I remember occasionally hearing this and being told it was due to the increased blood flow. It'd persist until I went to bed, but it was inconsistent so I didn't . One morning I woke up to the sound and decided to pay closer attention.

I've been on labetalol for a year now since I had severe pre-eclampsia when I delivered. We were weaning me down since my blood pressure had been doing well. I was taking about 50mg a day for a month when the pulsatile tinnitus began. My BP seemed to be creeping up around the same time so, with doc's blessing, I went back to my 100mg a day. The PT has started to fade but not entirely. Instead of long stretches at night it's maybe for a minute or so. I'm not positive but it seems like now it happens when my heart is beating particularly hard or quickly. For example, this morning I woke up to it and felt my pulse in my torso for a second. Another time I had a coughing fit (recovering from a cold) and it triggered.

This forum kept coming back and I've read through many other posts. It's been a real help when I felt worried and anxious. I don't know if she still posts, but I think a long-time member, Karen, has been amazing with all her insight! I've also found whooshers.com and reading through that to help further abate my anxiety. My GP is aware of the issue and making a referral for me to an ENT. Hopefully they'll be familiar with this and help me rule out serious issues.

 

[Halsy]

Try looking up benign or idiopathic intercranial hypertension. PT is really common in females particularly around or after pregnancy, or obesity, high BP, etc. Read up on it and bring it up with your doc. I'd ask her to get you into see a neurologist for an MRA and CTA. Yeah, Whooshers is good. Also check out Julian Cowan Hill's YouTube and his homepage http://juliancowanhill.co.uk/ He's just a wonderful human being helping people deal with T.

Also check https://www.tinnitusformula.com/ They're a wonderful company. Barry the president started it being a T sufferer himself. Check their library section. It's probably the most comprehensive and best on the internet. I think they're a good company well worth supporting unlike so many of the parasites out there who prey on the vulnerable. At the very least there's a lot you can learn on that site and that will help to no end. Good luck, Car, I hope we can all get through this together!

 

[StCarlyon]

Thank you for this! I saw an ENT today who seemed very familiar with PT. He mentioned many of the things I've seen in support groups. At this time he believes the PT I am experiencing may be a result of my hypertension. During the exam and audiology tests he said there were no immediate red flags that required additional testing. I have, however, the ability to call and request for a CT scan if it gets worse.