Hissing Tinnitus After Nightmare Ordeal — Good Sign? (Photos Included)

So I've been through the war with my left eardrum. I had a sinus infection in November until March 2022. Which then developed into an ear infection which took 4 rounds of antibiotics and several months to get rid of. It was extremely stubborn. This is when the ringing and beeping tinnitus begun.

I was then told I have a severely retracted eardrum. The eardrum was entirely sucked in. We're talking 95% retraction. The eardrum then blew a hole through itself and the pressure equalised. The perforation took 2 weeks to heal with the help of magnesium supplements which sped up the process a lot.

Now my eardrum looks like this:

Bad ear, eardrum bent:



Good ear:



(I purchased an ear camera from Amazon for £20 which has helped me keep an eye on the progress). I also had an MRI scan which came back 100% positive and clear apart apart from signs of high blood pressure.

As of the last week, the left eardrum handle is bent (see photo) and I have hissing tinnitus now. The right eardrum which is healthy has a straight eardrum handle. I'm not sure why the problematic eardrum looks bent / sucked in still (if you have any opinions, please feel free to share them).

I have been taking B vitamins complex which is good for nerve healing, and I have Cryotherapy treatment on Friday this week to see if the intense cold will help the inflammation.

I'm hoping this isn't permanent. I'm hoping now it's gone down to a hiss / static noise in the last month that it's progress as I am mentally really tired of this. I noticed when I do the Valsalva maneuver my eardrum doesn't inflate all the way, only sections of it inflate.

I'm just looking for some support really. Does anyone know why the eardrum handle might no longer be straight and seems to be being pinched in?

 

Anyone?

 

@Sugarpuddle, you're asking a medical question. I wish you the best.

"A retracted eardrum can sometimes resolve on its own. If treatment is needed, it may include nasal steroids, oral antibiotics, the placement of a temporary ventilation tube in the eardrum, or the surgical removal of enlarged tonsils or adenoids."

 

Hi Ken. Yeah I've been dealing with these issues for months now. I'm mentally exhausted. From an ear infection, to an extremely retracted eardrum (almost entirely sucked in), to a perforation, to another ear infection, to my eardrum being slightly sucked in again. The tinny static tinnitus is really beginning to get annoying.

I've sadly tried everything - from nerve medication to steroid tablets, sprays and drops. It's like the eardrum has collapsed and won't return to normal no matter what I do.

 

Hi @Sugarpuddle - I wouldn't be able to answer your question. Came by to give you moral support. I hope your eardrum heals well.

I was wondering if your ENT gave you any reasons. Did they give you a prognosis?

 

Do you feel any pressure, like congestion of fullness? I hope you won't end up like I did. I am still suffering form this fullness and congestion on and off.

 

No prognosis. But I'm guessing ETD. My MRI came back completely normal. No tumours, scar tissue or anything worrying.

However, since I've posted this I've found relief with antidepressants. I've been taking them for 2 days and my tinnitus has already gone down about 40% in volume. So it must have been some nerve damage from the perforations, infections and retraction.

 

No none. Feels completely normal, I just have a sucked in eardrum slightly. However, since posting this, I started on antidepressants and the tinnitus volume in 2 days has already gone down about 40%. There's a noticeable difference in my tinnitus. So I must have had some nerve damage somewhere in my eardrum.

I also checked with the camera and my eardrum is less sucked in today. It's slowly but surely healing.

 

I went to the hospital today and saw an Audiologist for a hearing test and an ENT.

I've been having hissing noises in my left ear after a series of ear infections. I was told by 2 nurses that the eardrum is very slightly retracted (and showed me - and yep the membrane is scrunched up and crackling. I also have a swelling feeling behind my eardrum). They said with time the swelling will eventually calm down and the pressure will equalise itself, which will make the eardrum relax.

I was also told I have nasal tissue damage that needs to scab over. It's healing well but when it loses its top tissue, the hissing noise gets louder and extends to both ears. Again, this is just a time thing and will eventually heal up and the swelling from this will calm down.

Audiologist backed this up. He said he immediately saw the difference between the two eardrums and the pressure gauge on my left ear is showing positive pressure in the Eustachian tube, which is caused by inflammation as the pressure is basically trapped. Very common to happen after infections in the sinuses and ears.

My turbinates in my nose are also very inflamed and tender to touch. Again, it's a result of the nasal tissue damage and infections.

Basically, there's a truck load of inflammation in my tubes due to multiple ear infections and wound damage to my nasal tissue.

And... then the ENT completely backtracked on what both a specialist nurse and the Audiologist informed me.

He said actually there is no retraction, no swelling, but in fact, extreme permanent nerve damage from the ear infection and that I'll probably go deaf one day. Great. I pointed out how the Audiologist said there is pressure issues - and he denied it saying there isn't any pressure issues. Even though I saw the scale and could see on my left ear a slight uptick.

Also, nerve damage in your eardrum 99% of the time is a ringing noise. I have a consistent static hissing noise, no ringing at all.

So I basically saw 2 doctors one right after the other who told me completely different things. One is saying pressure and inflammation problems, which makes sense as I can feel swelling and twitching behind my eardrum and in my left nostril, the other immediately slammed it saying nope - permanent hearing loss, nothing can be done, probably going to go deaf someday soon.

I just needed to vent. That was exhausting.

 

What antidepressant did you go on? Is it still helping with the tinnitus?

 

Nope. Didn't help at all. ENTs are useless. I now have an intense electricity hissing noise in my ear. No ringing. Turns out I have nasal tissue damage in my nose on the same side. When it scabs over, it's causing inflammation through my entire Eustachian tube. When that finally heals, I can use the nasal sprays to begin calming down the hissing caused by the inflammation.

It's insane. One single ear infection in my entire life has caused 9 months of ringing, beeping and hissing in my left ear.