Aural Fullness, Reactive Tinnitus, Crackling in Ears 9 Months After Acoustic Shock

Hello everyone,

Like for almost everyone else here, my life has been put upside down by one single event of training with wired earbuds with isolation rubber. During a training session, I forcefully rip them off by accident. That created negative pressure that probably caused acoustic shock (similar to microsuction incidents, I would say).

Immediately after, I felt a strong feeling of fullness. Two weeks after, I had problems with balance, a sense of wetness in my ear, tingling, and the fullness further progressed. Four weeks after, I have noticed tinnitus and reactive tinnitus, crackling when I swallow or run and soft fluttering when I put my finger into the ear. My hearing was fine. Now I have a slight decrease (15-20 dB) in the low frequencies,

The first improvement came after two months. The fullness got better by about 50% in the last nine months. Most of the symptoms do not bother me much, but the fullness is constant, very unpleasant and significantly limits my personal life and work. I also can not exercise, especially run, since my fullness is elevated by this action.

At first, there were concerns about perilymph fistula regarding the diagnosis, which were ruled out by MRI and HRCT. At this point, doctors were clueless. Later, I discovered TTTS (Tonic Tensor Tympani syndrome), which Myriam Westcott also confirmed as a possible diagnosis during an online call. However, after a recent call with Prof. Bance (Cambridge), there can be a different explanation, and that is a Cochlear hydrops which can be induced by the noise as well.

I did not try much medications as I thought it was TTTS, which does not have a clear medical recommendation. I was at Brai3n clinic in Belgium, where I was prescribed antipsychotic Deanxit. However, due to the side effects, I could not take it. Currently, I am on a low dose of Baclofen (5 mg x 3), which seems to have slight effects. In the following months, in cooperation with my doctor, I plan to try diuretics, steroids (intratympanic or oral), and a low dose of Aripiprazole.

I'm writing this post because I would like to warn people against using wired earbuds with isolation rubber and try to connect with people who gone through a similar journey and ask them about their tips.

Thanks for your time!

 

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