Beware of the Tympanometry Test...

Hi... I'm new to the forum, and would like to share a warning with you all based on my personal experience. It seems impossible to find an ear doctor who actually has an interest in reducing or eliminating tinnitus. They all just seem to want to sell you some hearing aids.

I finally selected one doctor who appeared to have knowledge on the subject based on his website. After just a minute or so of a brief examination, the conversation immediately moved to hearing aids... a $6,000 sale for them.

One of the steps to qualify for the hearing aids is a Tympanometry test. It's designed to check for any obstruction or damage to the auditory nerve (?).

When I went to have the test performed, it consisted of inserting small powerful air pushing speakers deep into my ear canal. Sort of like micro subwoofers.

Then they cranked up a series of loud pulsing noises, similar to what you hear in an MRI test.

Since loud noises are what can damage the eardrum and supporting components of the ear, why on earth would he conduct this test on me? It's like bringing your car to the garage with an engine knock, and a test would be to floor the throttle in neutral for 5 minutes and see what happens?

So as you might expect, my tinnitus is much worse now than ever before.

This is not good, but I try to remain positive. Has anyone else experienced this scenario?

Common sense tells you this is the worst possible thing to do to a hearing impaired or tinnitus suffering individual.

I do want to say I find comfort being among others in the same boat who are participating on this forum. Hoping for an actual cure or treatment soon.

Thanks everyone!

 

I've had the test done a few times without any impact on my tinnitus or hearing loss.

Do you have hearing loss? Unless you do, it seems odd that they would try to sell you hearing aids. And if you do have hearing loss, some individuals find their tinnitus diminishes with hearing aids. Hearing aids can also have masking sounds like white noise or Zen tones. So in that way, hearing aids actually can be one way to help reduce tinnitus.

 

I've been declining the tympanometry test ever since I've had my ear surgery. The test provides specific clues to diagnose specific conditions (for example, to determine if you have fluid behind the ear, or if you have a hole in your ear drum), but in my case I just want to figure out my hearing thresholds so I don't need to do that part.

I declined it again this Monday actually. The audiologist simply said "oh we do it all the time because we don't know what the ENT doctors want to see". It's just part of their routine and they don't really know why they do things.

 

I'm going to share my experience.

I did a tympanometry test. It was a bad one.

They use a probe with an earplug to change pressure inside your ear. There's a tone you hear at 226 Hz. It isn't loud, if you don't have hyperacusis or reactive tinnitus.

BUT THERE'S SOMETHING ELSE!

They test the eardrum but with different frequencies and different sound levels:

• 500 Hz
• 1 kHz
• 2 kHz
• 4 kHz

Both at 50 dB and 100 dB!

I don't have reactive tinnitus or hyperacusis, and I think it didn't cause a huge damage to my hearing but I can understand those who said that this test caused their tinnitus.

 

I am starting to suspect I might be dealing with Eustachian Tube Dysfunction and I wonder if I can precisely diagnose it without a Tympanometry? Does anyone know if that is possible? Or is Tympanometry crucial for it?

I have already done a Tympanometry once before (or maybe Acoustic Reflex Text, I think I had both on an Imitanciometry) and it's exactly as @Dann_sheep described. I had a spike when I did it and I want to avoid doing it again.

 

Then Tympanometry can be done with vibration, without the beeps. There is a beep, but it does not increase in volume.

In the Acoustic Reflex Test there are several beeps that increase in volume until they reach around 100 dB and trigger the acoustic reflex. This is a dangerous test for those who have tinnitus and hyperacusis, and can cause damage. But of course the ENT will tell patients that taking this test will be fine (do not do it).

 

Would doing a Tympanometry with vibration be enough to diagnose ETD? And also, do you think Tympanometry with vibration only is safe in terms of hearing safety?

I read a bunch of people reporting that Tympanometry is bad but I guess that there is a lot of confusion regarding these test names and then I don't know what to think or trust.

I appreciate your input!

 

It is one of the tests used to diagnose ETD. If it is very obvious, like ears popping all the time, maybe it can be observed with an otoscope.

For me Tympanometry with vibration was fine.