Tinnitus After Otitis Media / Glue Ear

[HelloWorld]

Hello everyone,

Since the 18th of May, 2021 I have had a very loud high pitched noise in my right ear. Around a week prior to this I went to the doctor to get my ear checked because for a few months I could not hear clearly in my right ear (almost deaf) - which was not due to noise exposure - and I thought it was time to visit the doctor. He said that I had otitis media and he gave me Sofradex. After 7 days the infection went away, but then around 5 days later my tinnitus started.

It's been less than 2 weeks, but this is driving me crazy, and I am starting to get worried about it being permanent. I can't really do my work properly and my ADD might even make it worse. I am a software developer.

I found the following sound on YouTube that changes the high pitched sound into something that sounds like static noise from a fridge. But after a few moments the high pitch comes back. Could listening to this make it worse in the long term?



I am currently using a spray for the glue ear. Any advice is appreciated.

Kind regards.

 

[K.A.]

Otitis media for many months but you have not been prescribed antibiotics?

How do you know the infection is gone if your ear is still "glue ear"?

If this is persistent, I would consider talking to the doctor again...

(Though be careful you don't get antibiotics that are ototoxic.)

EDIT: I later read that "Sofradex" might actually have an antibiotic component, but I don't know anything about it. You should check up if this medication could have something to do with it. Maybe also consider antioxidants, but please search the forum more, I am not a doctor.

 

[HelloWorld]

Otitis media for many months but you have not been prescribed antibiotics?

How do you know the infection is gone if your ear is still "glue ear"?

If this is persistent, I would consider talking to the doctor again...

(Though be careful you don't get antibiotics that are ototoxic.)

EDIT: I later read that "Sofradex" might actually have an antibiotic component, but I don't know anything about it. You should check up if this medication could have something to do with it. Maybe also consider antioxidants, but please search the forum more, I am not a doctor.

Thanks for your reply. I didn't know that I had an ear infection because only the hearing was muffled (no ear pain at all, but when I moved my head I could feel something move), so I thought it would go away by itself.

Then around 2 weeks ago I went to the doctor and he said I had an ear infection and it was all red. I'm pretty sure he said Otitis Media and he prescribed Sofradex. I had never heard of ototoxicity or the side effects of this because he never told me this.

I went back to the doctor's office today to check it out because I'm kinda worried about tinnitus now, and he said it all looked fine. But at the earlier visit I had on the 19th this month he said that I had glue ear and gave me a nose spray; this was after the infection cleared but the sounds where all still the same as before I took the Sofradex but now with tinnitus

The Doctor told me to come back in 3 months.

I cant really explain how my ear feels, but it is a lot different then my left ear (feels full? annoyed?) When I lay down on my right ear can feel something "drip" or maybe a better word is wet? but there is nothing there.


( might be wrong that he said otitis media, and just otitis, there is a slight language barrier ) but he gave me the Sofradex for the infection (he looked at it again today and it all looked normal)

 

[Brian P]

That is how my Ménière's disease started. I suggest you see an Otologist ASAP.

 

[HelloWorld]

I did an interesting discovery today, when I tilt my head to the side of the ear I have the tinnitus in, I feel / hear something move and then the high pitch noise almost goes down to silent, this gives me hope that the cause of my tinnitus is the stuff that is stuck inside my ear (glue ear). it doesn't always work because sometimes moving my head doesn't move anything and all sounds are still muffled, but sometimes it does something and it allows me to hear clearly again.

Also listening to the following changes the high pitch into static noise (adding the tilting of my head):



The same goes for when I step into the shower, the tinnitus is gone (or i can no longer hear it).

The only strange thing is that I had my ears full for a few months (though it was just earwax) without tinnitus and the tinnitus started 13 days ago a few days after the swelling/redness /infection disappeared (used Sofradex for 7 days, it didn't give me tinnitus while using it, but it started around 5 days after I stopped taking it).

 

[morgothaod]

I had the same thing, a middle ear infection in my right ear. I was prescribed Amoxicillin and it made the fullness in my ear go away but then I ended up hearing the ringing. I went back to the doctor and was given another round of Amoxicillin. The ringing persisted. I had my hearing tested by an audiologist and had no hearing loss. Also my ear looked normal. This was in 2009 and my tinnitus hasn't changed since then.

 

[HelloWorld]

I had the same thing, a middle ear infection in my right ear. I was prescribed Amoxicillin and it made the fullness in my ear go away but then I ended up hearing the ringing. I went back to the doctor and was given another round of Amoxicillin. The ringing persisted. I had my hearing tested by an audiologist and had no hearing loss. Also my ear looked normal. This was in 2009 and my tinnitus hasn't changed since then.

Thanks for your reply. I think my case is a little bit different. The infection went away 2 weeks ago, but the fullness didn't. It's not just a feeling of full ears, but if I tilt my head towards the bad ear, I can feel and hear something move. I really hope it's just because of pressure inside my ear that is causing the tinnitus because this is driving me mad. Sometimes it is extremely loud and sometimes it is very silent (but still there) or it changes to static noise. I also can't really hear well when I sit right up (because of the stuff that's inside I think).

I'm going back to the doctor tomorrow so they can forward me to an ENT.

I just had a workout and the beep is very very loud. Shit.

 

[Brian P]

@morgothaod, is your tinnitus bilateral?

 

[morgothaod]

@morgothaod, is your tinnitus bilateral?

No

 

[HelloWorld]

I think the root cause of my tinnitus is ETD. I have some sort of fluid inside my ear (I can feel it move), and today when I drank some water, I suddenly could hear something crackling when I swallowed and the tinnitus volume was at like 1 / 10. It also feels like the tinnitus gets worse when I feel more pressure inside my ear (90% of the time it is around the evening).

My doctor told me that ETD is probably the cause. I will be taking a break from the forum for a few weeks.

I will update the thread with good or bad news. The doctor told me it could take at least 8 weeks for it to be fixed (so I'm guessing if ETD is the cause of the tinnitus, it should improve if the pressure restores to normal).

 

[HelloWorld]

After 6 months the doctors probably found the issue that might be causing my tinnitus (he said, well 1+1=2 so your tinnitus might go away after we fix the issue).

There is a lot of stuff stuck inside my ear and around the auditory bone (probably got worse after I got the ear infection, didn't have tinnitus before it) and it is really likely that the cause tinnitus is the stuff stuck around my auditory bone. I have to go back to the hospital to figure out how to fix it, it's between getting a grommet and needing an operation. (leaving the stuff inside my ear will destroy the bones in like 10 years he said, so it has to be removed for sure)

So I really hope that the cause of my tinnitus is because the "stuff" is stuck against/around my auditory bone.

I'll keep the thread updated.

 

[HelloWorld]

2+ years later and all i can say, my situation didn't improve at all, I still have on and off issues with glue ear (ear fullness, fluid inside the ear keeps coming back), most likely due to ETD.

I started taking Amitriptyline 6 weeks ago to help with mental health issues (I blame it on the tinnitus), but I think it gave me pulsatile tinnitus.

Taking a shower doesn't mask the tinnitus anymore but I really hope this will come back soon, otherwise there is no moment of the day where it isn't annoying/intrusive AF.

I just hope they can at least give me some meds to deal with the depression without making everything worse.

My tinnitus right now: pulsatile tinnitus, static noise, like a TV test channel, and very high pitched EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.

I did a blood test and I am low on vitamin D3 (16 nmol/l), everything else looks fine.