More Hearing Loss and Sort of Freaking Out

Hi, I haven't posted here for a while as I've become pretty good at dealing with my tinnitus.

I had an experience yesterday though that is throwing me for a loop and I could use your feedback badly.

Until 2 years ago (2014), my hearing loss was pretty stable. It was very gradually getting worse.

In 2015, I had a pretty sudden loss in my right ear. That's where my tinnitus is mainly located also. My audiologist wanted me to have an MRI. I referred myself to the Dept. of audiology at UNC. They didn't give me an MRI and now I can't remember the reason why not. The UNC doctor tested my hearing and put me on steroids but it didn't seem to help much.

Basically, the advice in the end was to get my hearing aids better adjusted or get new ones.

It took me a while to get back to my regular audiologist so she retested yesterday. The hearing in my right ear is worse and she wanted to know if I had an MRI the year before. At first, I couldn't remember. She talked about getting a CI for my right ear or maybe a CROS hearing aid.

That was pretty shocking! (CROS) hearing aid is a type of hearing aid that is used to treat unilateral hearing loss. It takes sound from the ear with poorer hearing and transmits to the ear with better hearing.

She also mentioned seeing an ENT in her office but it's a small clinic and I may need to go somewhere else. I don't know where to go from here.

I'm including my audiograms from the last 3 years including the one from yesterday. From L to R, 2014,15 and 16 (yesterday).

I have called my primary doctor and she has ordered an MRI for me.

My audiologist called me today and said she could get me in with her ENT this week but what would be the advantage of that?

She mentioned steroids but I don't think this was a sudden, over night sort of loss. I think it's been happening over a period of months.

Any feedback is appreciated.

 

MRI will check for any problems to rule things out and check your middle ear bones.
The cross hearing aid would help as seen them but I'm sure they will look at what's best for you.
Try not to worry and see what they say when get the results ....
Look forward to Christmas and see what the New year brings as we imagine the worst and not usually the case.. lots of love glynis

 

What was your initial diagnosis? Idiopathic SNHL? Autoimmune? Noise induced?

Perhaps they skipped the MRI the first time given that it was bilateral, but usually they need to rule out structural defects if they don't know the exact cause. For me, it was a classic case of acoustic trauma, so we didn't pursue an MRI. Now that it's progressing unilaterally for you, I think an MRI would need to be done to rule things out.

 

@K_Cbus
for our general knowledge, could you please explain what is the suspected cause of your acoustic trauma..did you have good hearing before ? and why do you think it got worse gradually..
the loss is quite substantial form the audiogram..

 

My hearing loss? Or do you mean the OP's hearing loss?

Mine was caused by going to an indoor gun range with poorly fitted ear plugs. I was in there for about 50 minutes and when I came out, I couldn't hear anything. I had PROFOUND hearing loss that night. The next morning, I had an audiogram that showed 80 db loss in 2k hertz and 75 db hearing loss in 4k hertz. Now, after 2 weeks of steroids, I am up to 40-45db hearing loss in those ranges and basically normal in other ranges. I am not 100% and never will be (save for some miracle cure), but at least I am functional. I hear ok with most speech, except when people are turned away from me or mumble.

The tinnitus may be the worst part. Drives me insane...

 

I probably should give my hearing history. I started losing hearing in my late 40s, 16 or so years ago, for unknown reasons. It's sensorineural hearing loss. I started having tinnitus around 11 years ago. The tinnitus started in my right ear which had the worse hearing, again for unknown reasons. Hearing loss runs in my family but interestingly, no one else with hearing loss in my family has tinnitus. Because hearing loss is in my family, I assume my hearing loss is hereditary. Why my right ear is becoming so bad so fast I don't have any explanation for at all. Perhaps the MRI I'm scheduled for will shine some light on that but I doubt it.

Given what I said in my opening post, would you guys take the steroid treatment?