Eustachian Tube Dysfunction

Hi folks,

Okay so my GP has clarified to me the clicking when I swallow in my ear. There was a feeling of pressure/blocked feel initially two weeks ago now thats gone. Clicking is still there when I swallow, started with one ear now in both.

Anyway, so he says its ETD and I've been referred to an ENT who I see at the end of the month.

For any of you who have/had this, is this treatable?

 

I have clicking too every time I talk or swallow. I thought it was the Eustachian tubes also. I went to the ENT who said it was my jaw clicking. I don't believe him. I still think it's my Eustachian tubes. Dunno how to treat it. But if it is your jaw clicking (apparently theres only a tiny layer between the jaw and the ear so many times it's the jaw clicking which sounds like it's something in your ear clicking), you can You Tube: TMJ treatments and do some jaw exercises.

 

I thought I was going through an early phase of Labyrinthitis but my jaw fine, I did not seem to have any other TMJ symptoms but lets wait and see what the ENT says.

Thank you for your help though.

 

I have severe ETD and have a constant strong pressure feeling in the ears. It is treatable with Nasonex Cortisone nasal spray and if that doesn't work it can be treated with surgery. I might need that too this year...

 

The pressure/full feel is gone. Its just the clicking when I swallow now. Don't suppose its affected your eyes has it?

 

I've had clicking when I swallow all my life. I never notice it. I will say, however, that this is clicking when I pretty much swallow, instantaneously more or less. So if you swallow then a second or two later your ear clicks that's different from mine.

If you go to an ENT and the ENT does the tests and they are normal indicating no ETD, then this might just be something you'll have to ignore. I know you probably don't want to hear that but I never notice unless I focus on it.

 

Good for you! I wish it would go away for me haha
what do you mean with the eye thing? floaters? bad sight?

 

Well I've just seen an optician and they said my eyes are perfectly fine but been referred to a neurologist.

I basically am seeing coloured lines in my vision now for some reason, that and I have a layer of static too. The quality of my vision is fine though. Will see what this is all about, my guess blood pressure / anxiety / or maybe something in the brain. Hoping its not the latter.

 

Ok that I don't have. But this could very likely be stress/anxiety related...

 

Right, so after a scary December of having to wait so long to finally find out whats wrong with me (yeah my anxiety levels peaked + so did my tinnitus as a result)

I went to the ENT and he ran pressure tests on my ear, says no fluid behind the ear. Knows of my tinnitus. Did not recommend medication or surgery, ''let nature do its thing''.

I have a clicking noise when I swallow, most of the time in my right ear (not the problematic ear even, it started with my left and transferred to my right). Sometimes clicking in both.

So my question is, for anyone who solved the whole Eustachian tube problem and the clicking gone, did your tinnitus get back to the way it was before that happened? Did meds clear it? Or did you go for surgery?

Did it go away on its own? I know for a fact my tinnitus got worse ever since this problem. At least the full feel of the left ear is gone, very rarely do I feel it.

 

I'd love to know this too, I have a crackling sound in my right ear whenever I swallow or yawn, which I am certain is my eustachian tube playing up.

 

I still maintain this was some sort of reaction to the amount of pot I used to smoke. The last time I smoked last month it triggered the full feel in my left ear again and I haven't touched it since.

Will see my ENT again and mention that to him. I forgot to last time.

 

I have this problem too, the crunching, crackling noise whenever I swallow of even move the muscle in the back of my throat. Presumably it is, as you wrote, something to do with the eustachian tube.

I have tinnitus as part of a disease called Visual Snow Syndrome. Most people with this have both tinnitus and crunchy ears.

 

That's a new one that I've not looked at before

I don't know what's more annoying, tinnitus itself or the fact that literally millions of things can cause it, you could be guessing forever!

 

Actually I find it very interesting you mention this, I started having static vision + floaters in light places a few days after the whole Eustachian tube problem began (ive already had tinnitus for years) - only thing is I highly suspect its due to anxiety. I had an eye test and everything showed fine , Neurologist said he cant see anything serious wrong with me, if its still there in two months. One of the other symptoms was light sensitivity, also had chest pains but those have now resided. Anyway like I say, most likely due to anxiety.

 

Do the floaters you have look like little circles within circles?

 

Well there is one noticeable black dot floater in my left eye mostly. However lets say I look outside the window on a light day into the blue sky, I can see these white dots all sort of moving into each other and avoiding one another if that made any sense.

 

That sounds like increased visibility of Blue Field Entoptic Phenomenon (aka Scheerer's). This is another related symptom of visual snow.

If so, what you're seeing is your white blood cells as they move through the capillaries in front of your retina. Technically you're not seeing them, but their lack of shadow. The red blood cells absorb more wavelengths of light than the white blood cells.

How to see white blood cells in your eye - the...

It is normal for people to see this occasionally, but if you see this everytime you look at the sky(or everytime you look at any blue or white surface like I do) this is abnormal.

 

This issue started days after the whole Eustachian Tube issue, now im getting clicking in both ears most of the time I swallow, I will talk to my ENT again and tell him about the amount of pot I used to smoke.

Otherwise the neurologist did some body tests on me and said nervous system seems fine, if the issue is still there in two months he said he'll do some electric tests / MRI

 

Visual Snow Syndrome doesn't show up on CT or MRI scans. It does show up on fMRI scans as problems with how the brain processes contrast, though most neurologists aren't equipped to do fMRIs. There was some research done recently by Dr.Schankin at UCSF, the results are currently being peer reviewed and hopefully will be released within the next six months.

Tinnitus is one of the main symptoms of Visual Snow Syndrome, so finding out more about it will help shed light on tinnitus for everyone regardless of if they have Visual Snow Syndrome or not.

 

I've had tinnitus long before this issue arised, here is how the whole vision issue started

Days after the Eustachian tube issue I woke up with a headache when I looked at my screen (went back to bed for another hour and woke up fine) - same for the two days after. The headaches stopped since.

What remained was the static vision and light sensitivity by night time, this is now very rare. Its just static vision now. Anyway I dont care much for this anymore. I had an eye test and they see no problem with me, and the neurologist says return in two months if what you have is still there.

Anyway, like I say, maybe I have it maybe I dont, its the Eustachian tubes that are annoying and have spiked my tinnitus up. The clicking/cracking is annoying too.

Again, for anyone here who has/had these problems, did your tinnitus go back to how it was after these resided? Does the clicking/cracking problem go on its own?

 

My tinnitus/crunchy ears/visual problems also began with a headache. It's perhaps migraine related. Isn't there a relation between migraine and just plain tinnitus too?

 

Mate I did not think I'd find someone in the exact same predicament that I am in. Honestly, before last month with just tinnitus being my problem It was never something I really cared about that much.

The Eustachian Tube issue / Clicking and crunching noise / Visual problems all added up to a hell of a December. Now I'm just getting used to it. Going to see if it goes away, im not as anxious as I used to be and I quit pot.

 

Keep us updated and I hope you get better. I think it's very interesting that many people in the visual snow, tinnitus, and floater forums have symptom constellations that are similar but it's just different which symptom bothers them the most. This is why I believe there's something here worth investigating because if they find out the underlying cause of this it could help a lot of people.

That's good that you quit pot too, but I should just say, since a lot of people do have a misconception that visual snow is caused by drugs that I've personally never used drugs in my life and have only drank alcohol on a few occasions, and there are many other people with these symptoms who've never used drugs either. Here's an article about the research being done into visual snow and what's known so far:

http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/AAN/32416

There's also a visual snow Facebook group. Just log into Facebook and search for "visual snow" to find it.

 

You were right my friend, I definitely have Visual Snow Syndrome. Just thought I'd update you.

 

I have had the clicling ever since I got T but it doesn't bother me. It is weird though. Like there's glue in the top of my eustachian tubes or something

 

Look up whats called ''Glue Ear''.

Pressure tests or Tympanometry test at the ENT came back as normal, ears perfectly healthy. My Eustachian Tube Dysfunction is part of my Visual Snow Syndrome.

 

I've read that, but i've had it for like 8 months now. Is there a chance it will go away you think?

 

You can perform surgery on that which can take care of it as far as I know, did you consult with an ENT?

 

So, does anyone here have Eustachian Tube Dysfunction? I have been reading about it and am thinking I might have it.

What are the symptoms and what can you do about it? (Please don't say plug your nose and blow, obviously that's the first thing I did).

Thanks.