Can Tinnitus Begin Days AFTER Noise Trauma?

Hi all,

First post and just trying to work out how I got this thing and how that might inform the future. Basics = 45 y/o with ringing for four weeks in left ear only. Suspected cause - musician in band/loud rehearsal. Had weaker hearing in left ear from someone yelling in my ear as a 'prank' in early 20s.

The loud rehearsal was in early August, but when I left the room I did not have instant ringing. Rather, over the coming weeks I had infrequent short spikes lasting the usual 20-30s, often in both ears. But then in early September it began to morph into a more permanent ringing in left ear.

I did an online hearing test (Boots online in the UK) and sure enough at 4 kHz there was severe loss (70 dB) in the left ear. Right ear was ok.

GP said he could not properly see down both ears due to wax and referred me to ENT.

The earlier trauma in my 20s caused by someone yelling down my ear was so painful at the time I remember having to go home. There was no ringing after it but it left me with weakened hearing on the left ear (radio/alarms would be quieter on that side etc). It could be that I had the 4 kHz loss all along but the online test was the first time I checked it out!

Questions:

1) It's a slim hope, but could the wax be the cause given the already weaker hearing in left ear? GP said both ears had wax but the problem is only in the left. I realise this is probably straw-clutching.

2) If it was the loud rehearsal that did it, why would the hearing damage only be in one ear? (again, could this be that the damaged left ear was already weak and this 'tipped it over'?)

Thanks so much for reading.

 

Yes the onset can be delayed after acoustic trauma - not unusual at all. Also not unusual for one ear to catch more flak than the other, or for one to have been more beat up prior.

Yes it can also be wax, and if removed, the tinnitus could attenuate/resolve, though this may take a significant amount of time - could be months. If the ENT wants to remove the wax, DO NOT do microsuction or syringing, have them remove it manually e.g. by hand with an implement.

 

Thanks for replying, very helpful.