ENT :: Stapedectomy - Feedback / Review?
Oct 28, 2014
I've had bad hearing since a child. Am now 56. Had first hearing aids about ten years ago. Learnt to live with decreased hearing till then. Now got NHS aids. Six weeks (approx) ago, I noticed I'd lost 75% of what hearing I had in my left ear. No wax as had checked. Went to check aids. They were ok. Its my hearing that has deteriorated considerably in a very short space of time. Was offered stapedectomy 20yrs ago. Decided against it as success rate 50%! Now I think the time has come where I shall be offered stapedectomy and I need as much info as poss. Want to hear from people that have had this done and has it improved your hearing or made it worse (not that mine can get any worse!). Where you had it done? I would not be able to consider going abroad due to lack of funds.
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Background. I've had symptoms of Condylar Resorption for 6 years. Well technically I have not had ANY condyles for the last 2 years. I'm not in extreme pain. I have maybe 4 or 5 days a month where I can't function well from headaches, jaw, tooth, basically all over pain from the neck up. The rest of the time its livable but constant. I've been in two different jaw splints but since the last one broke two years ago, I have not wanted to invest in more as they are quite spendy. My pain is not extremely bad but if you press anywhere on my face it does hurt. Only my back teeth touch, my chin has receded, I can't breathe through my nose and I can fit my tongue through my front teeth. I'm concerned about my teeth not touching because my dentist said it would cause problems down the road if they continued to not touch. I'm also wondering if my top and bottom jaw just banging together is going to cause problems too. I have small children and having a major surgery that could make me permanently worse is not something I want to do to them. I am also getting this surgery done by Dr. Larry Wolford if that has anything to do with it. The first "TMJ Specialist" I saw thought his splints would miracle cure it. The last two I have seen have both said my only option to fix my bite and joints is surgery but I have not talked to one since the splint broke 2 years ago.
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After 1 arthroscopy, 1 bone graft, 2 ACLr my surgeon now thinks I may need a pkr or osteotomy. I know it's an impossible question to ask - but someone may have been through the same thing - if I have a pkr will the pain go? I'm reluctant to go through anymore surgery but I'm struggling walking sometimes.
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Having dealt with lower back pain for 20 something years and having had all the therapies the doctors could throw at me (traction, aqua therapy - read hot tub- inversion table, multiple PT sessions, electrical stimulation, po narcotics, epidural steroidal injections and more). It has now come to the point that surgery is the next option.
My spinal surgeon wants to fuse L2 to the sacrum due to multi-level disc bulging and herniation at the end of April 2014.
Then people have steered me in the direction of what Laser Spine Institute can do and I actually have approval from insurance to have treatment there and the process of getting treated there is also underway parallel to the above mentioned surgery.
So my dilemma is what to do. LSI offers what seems to be a minimally invasive, faster recovery option, but with newer technology that is not necessarily proved to give long lasting results.
On the other hand a full lumbar traditional fusion statistically gives relief to 30%, 30% get worse and 30% stay the same as for pain relief and with a 3-6months recover. And once you get fused like that, you paint yourself way into a corner if it is not an improvement for you.
The traditional surgeon does not have much good to say about LSI, but I am thinking of course he is not going to recommend that since he does the traditional approach.
Doing the LSI treatment does not exclude a traditional fusion later, however we have great insurance now, with great short term disability coverage and now is the ideal time to do a traditional fusion and be able to have the months of recovery without worries.
Reading about LSI people have varied opinions, many people say they have had great results and others say they are a quackery out to get people's money. Our insurance have said they would cover treatment though.
Don't know what to do.
Does anyone have experience with someone getting lumbar spine treatment at LSI and what was the experience.
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I am having cell stem therapy for an arthritic knee and wondered if anybody else is having this treatment?
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Please can someone tell me how the responded to stem cell therapy for arthritis in hips? We now have a London based surgeon who is offering this, and wondered what your experience and results are?
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I am considering a stapedectomy in my left ear but worried that I may be getting too old for this type of surgery and will experience a much more difficult time with recovery.
I would like to hear from others close to my age with your experiences. My other option is a bone anchored hearing aid which I really do not want to do.
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After the usual IV insertion, walking to OR and walking up rather groggy, I must say the first few hours were strange. Having limited hearing in my right for the past 7 years ( and getting worse) I decided to go for the operation.
My mouth and throat were very dry (11am operation with no food or drink in 12 hours) and deep breathing was challenging. I was encouraged to take deep breaths to clear anything from my lungs. My OP ear was full of cotton and gauze so hearing from that side was nada. My good ear was very amplified like I had a microphone inside my mouth, I would scratch my head and it was LOUD. I was discharged after I could stand without aid and at home crashing on the couch.
I had a protein shake and a bowl of hot soup and felt very stable with no dizzy spells or balance issues, but still the amplification inside my head. I had ringing tones on my OP ear on and off but no pain. If I plugged my good ear I could hear nothing but the ringing.
Five hours now and I feel good but I can hear everything around me, the talking , the tv, things very far away are very clear. My dog barked right beside me and I nearly jumped off my chair, scared me. It was loud. I used to watch tv on 65 volume now it's at 40 volume.
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I am 45, Male ,married with a daughter. active in profession. My hearing is facing problem as I am unable to hear soft voices in meetings & discussion. Doctor has suggested to go for Stapedotomy. Another option is Hearing Aid. I am very anxious to know how much risk is there to go for Stapedotomy? Can It worsen the hearing? Instead of 45, if I wait for another 5 years, will it be same effect of Stapedotomy or surgery at that stage will not bring any result?
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Now at day 41 and stapedectomy still not working. Hearing was no better when packing was removed at 2 weeks. Surgeon said it will still be fluid. Climbing the walls counting EVERY single day. Waiting for something to happen. Just had a weeks course of steroids, no difference. It feels as if i'm in a goldfish bowl and everybody around me is on the outside, i feel like i'm in a deep hole and can't get out. I'm sure there's still fluid there as i can feel it when i swallow, and also on several occasions each day when i swallow, mainly listening to music, i get a one split second burst of loudness which after reading the internet makes me thinks it's my tube blocked? But it doesn't hold open for longer than a swallow. I also get like a thumping on my eardrum when i belch, as if a blast hits it? This also wakes me in the night with the banging. Not that i sleep much as EVERY waking moment of my life at the moment is consumed by it. I've had 6 weeks off work until now, due to go back in tomorrow. My unsteadiness had cleared for about 10 days but came back with avengence a couple of days ago. Not vertigo dizziness, but like the quick movements dizziness. I do still get crackling and clicking in my ear. Spoke to surgeons secretary last thursday who is going to get a message to him this tuesday, as that's the first time she will see him apparently. Has anybody else had fluid for this amount of time, or can give any advice or anything to make me feel it'll still work and that i can get my life back?
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I am just in the recovery process a week after having the op.
On coming around from the operation i noticed an immediate volume change for the good, the sounds were very very loud for the first couple of days, but has settled a little know.
It feels like i have a shell over my ear so the sounds are not clear as yet, maybe to do with the dressing still in there, although there is no pain.
Family and friends say i am talking a lot quieter.
I believe this will open up a whole new world to me.
My operation was done on our NHS, only having to wait about 4 months.
I might sometime in the future be having the other ear done.
Good luck to anyone who is considering the operation it has taken me 3 years to reach a decision.
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I am deciding whether or not to get a stapedectomy done, and my doctor told me that it is only a 0.1% chance (1 out of 1000) that i will go completely deaf. i think i am going to go through with it...since i have been partially deaf my whole life, and am excited to hear the difference.
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I'm 4 weeks in after a stapedectomy. Got advice to avoid lifting but also as much exercise as possible for the next month still (except for walking). Any ideas on what other mild exercise I could do? Anyone had difficulties with exercise after stapedectomy/ or want to tell how did it go with it afterwards and what kinds of exercise they did/do?
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I am 3 days out, having a stapedectomy. I feel like my head is full, and the bouts of dizziness is bad at times. Does anyone know about how long this may last the dizziness bout. Will it get better? I'm taking antivert every 12hrs, is there something better? I heard taking ibuprofen helps with the inflammation.
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I had a Stapedectomy in both my ears. My left ear I had done 4 yrs ago. Now I am getting vertigo, not full blown, but just enough to annoy me and make me feel light headed. My ear also feels sore. This has been going on for a few days. It's not like an ear infection sore, but just sore like something is not right. Now I am not sure what is causing this. I have been taking ibuprofen for the soreness and when I do, about 20 min later I don't feel as light headed. Could something be just swollen in my middle ear? About 2 months ago I had my ear flushed out with water by my regular doctor, but that didn't seem to bother anything. About 2 weeks ago I noticed like clicking in my ear and during that time I went to hear a band play. I don't know what is going on and I am getting kind of worried. I was going to wait a week and see if it all goes away. I do get this vertigo about once a year and it lasts about a week or so. Then I am fine. What do you all think? Any doctor's out there that could help? I don't want surgery again! I had a tough recovery and the thought of it terrifies me. Also am I not allowed to go scuba diving? We are going to turks and caicos next month and I wanted to scuba dive but I heard you can't.
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Can anyone tell me how long it took for the gel packing to "melt away" after the surgery? I don't have an appointment until a month after surgery-which seems unusual after reading other posts. I'm only 5 days post-surgery, but the packing is driving me crazy. I think it is causing a loud whooshing noise whenever I am sitting up. I think it is also making it painful if I lie on my non operated side-as if it is putting extra pressure on the ear drum?
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I had a stapedectomy in my right ear on 23-aug-2013 its 1-sep-2013 today but i really can't hear by my operated ear till now, The only thing that is worrying me is that I don't know if it worked or not. For those of you that have had the surgery, what was your hearing like afterward?
It just feels itchy and stuffed up (the gauze is still packed in there).
Has anyone had to wait until that was completely out to notice a significant difference?
can any one tell me is it ok to not still hearing by the operated ear if its ok then how long it'll take to hear normally by operated ear.
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I was virtually deaf in one ear and very little hearing in the other ear, have worn hearing aids for 25 years. Recently (all happened so quickly, within 6 weeks) got diagnosed with Otosclerosis in both ears. 6 weeks after seeing doctor, i had the op. I had a stapedectomy/stapedotomy on 04/01/2016. Noticed a faint improvement in hearing when lying on the ward after the op, could faintly hear trolleys being moved about. But nothing drastic...... I've had dizziness, (not room spinning dizziness) which now only remains if i read, do jigsaws, scan shop shelves from side to side etc, weird! I've been through the heart pulsating, creaking, the rain dripping onto a metal plate sound etc.
I've had no real explanation of what to expect, i didn't really ask the surgeon any questions as i wasn't sure what would happen after and was unaware i'd have so many unanswered questions come up.
I assumed, and read some on the internet, and was told by a friend who'd had it done, that once the packing was removed, i'd be able to hear. Had packing removed 6 days ago, i'd built myself up SO much, that i stood and sobbed when i still couldn't hear! Surgeon looked a bit puzzled, but he said he wasn't worried at this point and to see him again in 6 weeks and that it'd be fluid behind my ear. He said i need to have some popping before i'll hear.
So, here i am now, with no change in my hearing for the last 6 days. I'm sure when i swallow, i sound as if fluid is in there? I also get like a thunder noise mainly in the morning when i wake up and my throat moves. But what's worrying me most after reading up on the internet again, is when i put headphones on, i can hear the music, (have to have it on loud to hear it), but the loud thumps/beats in the music make my ear crackle like a loose wire on a radio. I read last night that this is because the op hasn't worked and the prosthesis needs tightening/shortening/revising. But then on the other hand i've read that this may be normal?
If i go to do a burp movement when i have music in the headphones, i get a millisecond of a loud noise, but then it goes again as my throat can't seem to hold the noise open if you get what i mean. I have soooo many questions but don't want to bore you with them, maybe later. So, should i be hearing by now, is the crackling loose wire sound normal, and if you have any other advice that might stop me worrying please. I'm just sitting waiting day by day thinking today might be the day that i hear.
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So, I bit the bullet and had the same surgeon who operated successfully on my left ear operate on the right ear yesterday. I had a much harder time with nausea and recovering from the general anesthesia than the first operation. The first time, I threw up once and that was it. Yesterday, I was throwing up a lot, and then they give me a phenergan injection, which just made me so weak and tired that the nurses had to get me dressed. And they were insistent that my friends take me home at noon, because they were getting the people for the 2 pm operations ready. My poor friend was driving with me in the back throwin up into a plastic bag.
Right now, I'm having a lot of pulsatile tinnitus in the right ear, which was not the case with the left ear operation. It's very loud because it's not masked by any external sound and is very distracting. I had pulsatile tinnitus in that ear before, and now it's even louder, unfortunately. As tired as I was last night, it kept on waking me up. Because I had some mild nasal congestion, the surgeon has me on oral antibiotics and nasal spray for a few days. I have very little discharge on the cotton balls so far, but it looks like a piece of the gelfoam packing came out on one of the cotton balls (at least I hope that it's gelfoam and not my eardrum!).
When I had the first operation, the right ear "popped" and I began to hear low frequencies sounds 8 days after the operation. Can't wait to get some relief from the tinnitus with external sounds.
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Heartbeat in ear on my ten day, will it stop?
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