Having Tinnitus After Ear Wax Cleaning (Water Irrigation) and Neomycin Ear Drops

Hello all,

Thanks to God and the folks who created this community. My tinnitus started in January 2021 after ear wax cleaning at CVS pharmacy. I wish I had gone to a proper ENT doctor for having my ear wax cleaned up. I felt some ear pressure on my left ear that morning, went to CVS that evening. The physician there cleaned my ear wax through water irrigation and prescribed me Neomycin ear drops. After a day of use or so, ringing started in my left ear. It is continuous from that time onwards.

After a week or so, I went to a proper ENT and he immediately advised me to not use the Neomycin ear drops. He said I should start feeling better after a week. That did not happen.

I went again to the ENT, this time he prescribed Azelastine nasal spray as I mentioned I was facing nasal congestion. He mentioned this should help. Apparently it also seems my ear drum had a hole earlier and it was covering up now. So I should start feeling relief as time goes by and ringing would stop.

After using this Azelastine spray, my right ear which never had ringing before now starts ringing.

Kindly advise what should I do? Should I stop using this Azelastine spray or keep continuing? Also, is it time for me realize that I should live with this condition and learn to habituate?

Thanks for reading my post.

 

Hello, welcome!

Both of those things can cause tinnitus.

I wouldn't necessarily blame the Azelastine for the ringing merging to your other ear as well. It's common for tinnitus to merge into both ears even if it appeared to start only in one. But just in case I would stop the spray myself... Unless the nasal congestion is so bad that you need it.

You are currently in "acute tinnitus" period, which lasts up to 3-12 months depending on what scientist you believe. There is still a chance for it to go away or improve considerably.

How loud is your tinnitus? If it's not very loud, it will be easier to habituate to.

 

Thank you @ajc for your response. It is not very loud at the moment, some days it's not that noticeable, some days it's noticeable.

Are there any reasons to believe the use of nasal spray might cure tinnitus? Also, if my tinnitus is due to Neomycin ear drops, is it possible that it can go away over time?

I wonder why doctors prescribe Neomycin ear drops if they are that harmful. Because I see this elsewhere on the internet how bad the Neomycin ear drops are.

 

If I have tinnitus, does it mean I am losing hearing? Please let me know.

 

NO IT DOES NOT. Where did you get that idea from?

Many people have tinnitus but no measurable hearing loss.

 

Thank you @ajc. I read some posts from people saying initially they had tinnitus, after years they started experiencing hearing loss. So I panicked a bit.

 

Hi, I have had tinnitus since January 18, 2021. It started after ear wax cleaning with a lot of water irrigation and used Neomycin ear drops.

Yesterday, I took Zinc, Turmeric, 200 mg L-Theanine, Vitamin B complex. I took all these based on my research. Now feeling like I have a spike.

Do any of the supplements I listed above sound risky?

Please let me know.

 

Those all are safe, and can't make tinnitus worse. Your spike is unrelated to these supplements. Sometimes tinnitus gets louder for a day or two for no reason.

 

Thanks @ajc. In case my tinnitus is caused by Neomycin ear drops, would you think it is irreversible? I am not sure what caused it, it is either the ear irrigation or the drops, because only after these, I started getting this condition.

 

All kinds of tinnitus can go away even after months or years. The longer you have it, the less likely it is to go away, but you are still in the early stages so anything is possible. It's impossible to say if it was caused by the syringing or the Neomycin, or the combination of those two.

 

Thanks for the response @ajc. I still beat myself hard for going to CVS that day for ear irrigation instead of going to a proper ENT. Need to try to let it go and live with it. The more I measure the pitch, focus on it, the less likely it is to go away I think.

 

Are you a regular user of headphones, earbuds or headsets? This would have caused your tinnitus. If this is the case, my advice is to not use them.

 

Thank you @Michael Leigh. Just before this started, I was using Apple AirPods Pro quite frequently... Now I have stopped using them.

Order of events is Apple AirPods Pro usage for couple of months -> ear pressure one morning -> felt I need to clean ear wax, went to CVS 1 Minute Clinic -> Physician said I have a lot of wax, used large amounts of water to clean up, prescribed Neomycin ear drops -> tinnitus started after a day or so and it's been over one month.

 

@Vj926

I went straight-in at the deep end Vj926 because headphones, earbuds, Airpods and headsets are some of the most common causes of tinnitus. My advice is not to use these again even at low volume. You are in the very early stages of tinnitus but try not to worry too much. If your tinnitus is noise induced and I suspect it is, I'm confident you'll make a good recovery in time. However, please click on the links below and read my articles and try not to skim through them. Afterwards, go to my started threads and read the following articles: The habituation Process, Will my tinnitus get worse? Hyperacusis, As I see it.

Start using a sound machine at night by your bedside and and during the day. More about this is explained in my articles.

Take care
Michael

New to Tinnitus, What to Do? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum
Tinnitus, A Personal View | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

 

Thank you so much @Michael Leigh.

 

Just one more question @Michael Leigh. I am now avoiding using headphones. Sometimes when I am at work, I may have to use headphones to attend office meetings.

Any suggestions on how to minimize damage or how to handle the meetings?

 

The only way to minimize damage Vj926 is not to use headphones even at a low volume. I am serious about this. Please believe me I have no wish to scare you but if your tinnitus is noise induced, and I'm fairly sure it is, my advice is not to use any form of headphones. There will be people in this forum that will say using them at a low volume is safe. Indeed, for some people it is but often it is not. Some doctors will tell you the same. The sobering truth is: Doctors are physicians, not tinnitus specialists and most have never experienced tinnitus, unlike others in this forum that have had it for many years.

I have no desire to be a killjoy but it would be remiss of me not to tell you what I think. You can of course ignore my advice.

I wish you well whatever you decide. If you want to message me again please do.
Take care.

Michael

 

Thank you @Michael Leigh, I will literally avoid using headphones at all. I hope I never face situations at work where I am forced to use headphones in meetings.

 

Hi @Michael Leigh, I saw your post about computers and tinnitus. I don't use a PC, but I work on laptops and use them a lot. Do you think laptops can also cause issues?

 

Thank you @Michael Leigh. Two questions please.

1) Is it ok to use a laptop instead of a PC for work?

2) Coming to sound enrichment, are there specific sounds recommended? For me, crickets chirping sound seems helping. I noticed your suggestion to keep the volume low below tinnitus, makes sense. Just wanted to know if any kind of masking sound is okay, or is there any preference?

 

HI @Vj926

I have only seen your post by chance. When writing my name please don't put a full-stop at the end, if you do I won't receive an alert message.

It should be ok to use a laptop at work but please be aware of the following: Some people with noise induced tinnitus myself included, notice their tinnitus increase and can become steadily worse if, the laptop has an internal hard drive that spins and internal spinning fan. Since I have changed to a laptop that uses an SSD (solid state) hard drive which doesn't spin- nor does it have an internal spinning fan, I no longer have any problems. The same applies to PC, where the case has an spinning hard drive and internal fan. For years I had to place my computer in another room and use, a wireless keyboard mouse and monitor. I couldn't use a conventional Laptop more that 5 to 10mins without my tinnitus increasing. This is very real. As I have said only some people with noise induced tinnitus are affected, so see how you get on.

In my article Tinnitus A Personal View I have covered sound enrichment and the benefits of it. It is a matter of what you find suitable. A lot of people find sounds of a running stream soothing and this it was I use. Sound Oasis make very good sound machine, and made for people with tinnitus. Model S-650 is popular. I have three models: S-650, S-850 travel and S-5000 their top model where over 100 sound combinations can be mixed. If you go to my started threads, there is a post titled Sound Machines, where I explain them in more detail.

You can use any kind of sound but I don't suggest music for use at night, as it draws attention to itself. Remember, the tinnitus must not be masked. It must not be covered up with a sound that prevents the brain from hearing the tinnitus. Set the sound enrichment slightly below the tinnitus. The volume should be set at a level that enables you to easily ignore it.

Michael

 

Thanks @Michael Leigh! This is very helpful. Especially the suggestion that the masking sound should be below tinnitus is very crucial.

One more question, I apologize, this is the last for the day I promise. In my initial message, I have mentioned the use of AirPods but also Neomycin ear drops. Some of the posts in the forum blame Neomycin ear drops as being able to cause tinnitus.

Just curious about the factors that made you think about the headphones/AirPods being the reason compared to the Neomycin ear drops.

I respect your views and judgement, and in no way am I questioning it, this question is just to understand your perspective. Thanks again for your time.

 

The advice I give in this forum is just advice, it is not absolute. However, I have had noise induced tinnitus for many years and correspond with a lot people with this condition. In most cases the tinnitus is noise induced and typically, it is caused by listening to music through headphones, earbuds, headsets including AirPods at too high a volume. It is the first thing I ask when someone new to tinnitus requests help. If the person says they are not a regular user of these devices, don't attend venues where loud music is played or work in a noisy environment etc, it leads me on to the next question. The tinnitus could be caused by an underlying medical condition within the auditory system. All this is explained in Tinnitus, A Personal View.

Please consider what other members advise for their suggestions may be right and I am wrong. The thing is, tinnitus can appear out of the blue for no reason, however, something usually causes it. By taking on board my advice and whatever someone else advises you'll have more information and hopefully find out the cause of the tinnitus.

Take care
Michael

 

Hi, I have been taking this for a while. Now that I have tinnitus, I wonder if should I continue taking this or stop it? Any danger flags with this drug here? Can it make tinnitus worse or better?

https://www.vitaminshoppe.com/p/bodytech-nitrulline-180-tablets/vs-2266

Ingredients - L-Citrulline, Arginine, L-Taurine, Alpha Lipoic Acid

 

I don't think any of those will make a difference for better or worse.

 

I have been using some masking sounds. I make sure I keep the masking sound volume lower than the tinnitus volume. I used it day and night. But after trying this for couple of days, my tinnitus sound has spiked. Can I continue to use masking sounds or stay away from it?

 

Most people use masking sounds, and most are ok using them. But if they spike your tinnitus, you might want to avoid masking.

 

Although you are not masking your tinnitus, try to use the correct term which is "sound enrichment". The idea is to incorporate or enrich sound into your background environment without drawing attention to itself. When done correctly it can be very beneficial but takes time for the brain to adjust and ignore it. A period of six to eight weeks sometimes a longer is required.

Sound enrichment must be delivered correctly and certainly not through any type of headphones. One can use a table top sound machine during the day and also at night. As I have said it takes time to get used to this and needs to be worked at. If your tinnitus is spiking keep the sounds low and keep trying. Tinnitus isn't easy and you are very new to it. Your brain is focusing on a sound that wasn't there prior to 1/2021. Read my articles again and those on my started threads. Please click on the link below and read my post: From Darkness Into Light, it's about the experience of a forum member that you might find helpful.

All the best
Michael

From Darkness Into Light | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum