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Hopefully these general topic areas cover your
questions. If your question is concerning Meniere's Disease,
click here. If you have a question
that is not answered on this page, do not hesitate to Ask
the Doctor.
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| Q: Who experiences
Hearing Loss
Hearing Impairment
is the most common chronic handicap in the US. More than
28 million people 3 years of age or older have hearing trouble.
One in 200 children is born with congenital hearing loss,
usually discovered late (2-3 yrs of age), which significantly
impacts their ability to devlop normal speech and language skills.
Less than 10% of people 65 years of age and older have normal
hearing. Hearing loss can happen gradually over a period
of weeks of years, or suddenly over one night or a few days.
Q: Are
there different types of Hearing Loss?
There are three
types of hearing loss, depending on which part of the ear is affected:
- Conductive Hearing Loss - external and middle
ear diseases
- Sensori-Neural (Nerve) Hearing Loss - inner
ear hearing hair cells, hearing nerve, or hearing centers in
the brain
- Mixed Hearing Loss - both Conductive and Sensori-Neural
loss are present
Q: How is Hearing Loss treated?
Medical and surgical
treatment options for hearing loss are expanding. It is
generally accepted that early intervention with some types of
hearing loss, especially sudden hearing loss, is associated with
favorable outcome. Like eye glasses for poor eyesight, hearing
aids are essential in treating hearing loss.
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to Tinnitus |
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| Q: I sometimes
hear ringing in my ears, is this unusual?
Not at all. Tinnitus
is the name for these head noises, and they are very common. This
condition may come and go, or you might always be hearing sound.
It varies in pitch (from a low squeal to a high whine) and
can be present in either one or both ears.
Q: Who experiences Tinnitus?
Nearly 36 million
Americans suffer from tinnitus. Persons of all ages can
experience ear ringing. Tinnitus is more common in the adult
and senior populations. It usually happens gradually over
a period of weeks, months, or years.
Q: Are
there different types of Tinnitus?
There are two types
of tinnitus: objective and subjective. Objective tinnitus
can be heard by people around you, whereas only you can hear subjective
tinnitus. The type of sound you hear can also differ. Tinnitus
can be a continuous sound like a sea shell (Continuous) or pulsing
like your heart beat (Pulsatile). Continunous tinnitus is
the far more common type.
Q: What causes Tinnitus?
Objective Tinnitus
may be caused by abnormalities in blood vessels around the outside
of the ear or by muscle spasms, which may sound like clicks or
crackling inside the middle ear.
Subjective Tinnitus
has many causes. Temporary Tinnitus may be caused by something
as simple as a small plug of wax in the ear canal. If Tinnitus
persists, however, it can be a symptom of a middle or inner ear
problem. Middle ear problems include: infection, a hole
in the eardrum, an accumulation of fluid in the middle ear, or
stiffening of the middle ear bones. Inner ear prolems
include: hearing loss, Meniere's
Disease, or tumors on the hearing nerve. Tinnitus is
commonly associated with hearing loss due to aging (presbyacusis),
use of certain medications (i.e. aspirin), or noise exposure. Other
causes of Tinnitus are allergy, high/low blood pressure, diabetes,
thyroid problems, and/or head or neck injury. When the inner
ear is harmed due to any of the above causes, the hearing hair
cells (see picture below) begin to vibrate on their own, producing
sounds new to the brain that we interpret as Tinnitus.
Q: How is Tinnitus treated?
Treatment differs
for each individual case of Tinnitus. Once the cause is
determined, the doctor is able to decide on the most effective
treatment. In most cases, there is no specific treatment.
The doctor may be able to eliminate the noise based on the
cause. In some cases, medicine may help reduce noise and
discomfort.
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to Earwax |
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| Q: What is Dizziness?
Dizziness is a
feeling of imbalance or dysequilibrium. It can be marked
by feeling dizzy, lightheaded, unsteady, or giddy.
Q: What is Vertigo?
Vertigo is another
sort of balance problem, marked by a sensation that you are turning
or spinning.
Q: Where do I get my sense
of balance?
Your sense of balance
is maintained by an interaction of several parts of the nervous
system:
- the inner ears monitor the directions
of motion, such as turning, forward-backward, side-to-side,
and up-to-down
- the eyes monitor where the body is in
space (i.e. upside down or rightside up) and also directions
of motion
- the skin pressure receptors (in the
joints and spine) tell what part of the body is down and touching
the ground
- the muscle and joint sensory receptors
tell what parts of the body are moving
- the central nervous system (the brain
and the spinal chord) processes all the bits of information
from the four other systems to make sense out of everything.
Q: So, what makes me feel dizzy?
The symptoms of
dizziness appear when the central nervous system receives conflicting
messages from the other four systems. There are five major
medical causes for dizziness:
- Circulation - If your brain does not
get enough blood flow, you will feel light headed. The
same goes for people with generally poor circulation (chronic),
which may be a result of arteriosclerosis or hardening of the
arteries. High blood pressure, diabetes, or high cholesterol
may also lead to poor circulation.
- Injury - A skull fracture damaging the
inner ear will produce an incapacitating vertigo with nausea
and hearing loss which will last for several weeks.
- Infection - Viruses (i.e. common cold,
flu) can attack the inner ear and its nerve connections to the
brain which can result in vertigo, but will not affect hearing.
On the other hand, a bacterial infection (i.e. mastoiditis)
that reaches the inner ear will destory both heaaring and equilibrium
in the ear.
- Allergy - Some food or environmental
allergies can result in dizziness/vertigo attacks with exposure
to the allergen.
- Neurological Diseases - Diseases of
the nerves such as multiplesclerosis, syphilis, and tumors may
cause dizziness and vertigo.
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| Q: What is Motion Sickness?
Motion sickness
is a feeling of nausea or even vomiting when riding in an airplane,
moving vehicle, boat (sea sickness), or amusement park ride.
Q: Is Motion Sickness serious?
Usually, motion
sickness is a minor annoyance and does not signify any serious
medical condition or illness.
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| Q: What is Ear Ache?
Ear Ache (Otitis
Media) is inflammation of the middle ear, which results from a
middle ear infection. It is the most frequently diagnosed
ailment in children and the most common cause of hearing loss
in children.
Q: How serious is Ear
Ache?
Ear Ache is very
serious because it can result in severe pain, hearing loss, impaired
learning capactiy, and delayed speech development. It is
also serious because it can spread to other parts of the head.
Q: What does the middle
ear do?
The middle ear is
about the size of a pea and filled with air. The middle
ear is seperated from the outer ear by the eardrum (which is paper-thin).
The middle ear acts as a vibration "chamber" for
the three tiny ear bones attached to the eardrum. The vibrations
and motions of the bones (sounds you hear) are transmitted through
the middle ear to the inner ear where they are converted to electrical
signals and sent to the brain.
Q: What are the symptoms
of Ear Ache?
In infants and
toddlers:
- pulling or scratching the ear
- hearing problems
- crying/irritability
- fever
- vomiting
- ear drainage
In young children,
adolescnets, and adults:
- earache
- feeling of pressure
- hearing problems
- dizziness
- nausea/vomiting
- ear drainage
- fever
Q: What causes Ear Ache?
Acute Otitis Media
is caused by a a build up of fluid (pus and mucus) behind the
eardrum, which is a result of blockage of the eustachian tube
during a cold, allergy, or infection. Serious Otitis Media
is caused by the accumulation of pus resulting from the rupture
of the eardrum. Also called middle ear effusion, this condition
often follows the acute infection and lasts for weeks.
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to Earwax |
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| Q: What
is the TMJ?
The TMJ is the Temporo-Mandibular
Joint where the lower jaw connects to the temporal bone of the
skull. This is located right in front of the ear of both
sides of the head. The joint is used every time you chew,
talk, or swallow, making it one of the most frequently used joints
in the human body.
Q: What are symptoms
of TMJ dyscfunction?
The following are
common symptoms:
- Ear pain
- Sore jaw muscles
- Temple/check pain
- Jaw popping or clicking
- Locking of the jaw
- Hard to open the mouth all the way
- Frequent head/neck aches
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| Q: What is Earwax?
Earwax is produced
naturally by glands in the skin of ear canal (outer part). The
wax is a defense mechanism meant to trap dust and dirt particles
before they reach the eardrum.
Q: Should I clean my
ears?
The rule is: Never
put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear! Wax
buildup on the eardrum is often a result of cleaning with a q-tip,
twisted napkin, etc. All these things do is push the wax
in deeper. Using these objects is also harmful because the
skin of the ear canal and eardrum is very sensitive and fragile.
Earwax is a natural defense mechanism, the absence of which
may result in dry, itchy ears. Your ears usually self clean
themselves, earwax hardens as it moves away from the eardrum and
falls out.
Q: What are symptoms
of wax buildup?
Common symptoms
are:
- Partial hearing loss
- Tinnitus (noises in
the ear)
- Earache
- Sensation that the ear is plugged
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