Pulsatile Tinnitus in Right Ear Only When It's Plugged?

Hello,

I've had pulsatile tinnitus since mid-January of this year. I got it a few weeks after a sinus infection (which I thought went away after I took antibiotics for it). It started randomly after I smoked one night, and it's been on and off since then. I've always had nasal inflammation (more so in my right nostril than my left), and the whooshing sound is in my right ear only. I've seen an allergist, thinking it may be due to some allergy because when I take Claritin or Sinus medication it goes much quieter. Some days, it's completely gone, and other days it's very irritating and loud. My doctor told me that smoking also irritates sinuses, so I stopped smoking about a month ago. My blood pressure has always been normal, and I have no other health problems that I know of.

I notice that a lot of the time I can only hear the sound when I plug my ear a certain way, it has to be at a specific angle and really tightly plugged by my finger... I take my tragus and cover my ear with my finger on the outside of it, and if this is done at a certain angle I can hear the whooshing more. I have tried pressing behind my ear, at different veins in my neck, and that doesn't seem to stop the noise. I also got my doctor to listen for abnormal blood flow behind my ear/on my neck, or to see if she could also hear the whooshing, she didn't hear anything. I'm assuming I have subjective pulsatile tinnitus. The noise sounds like sort of a whooshing or as if there's fluid running through my ear. It often feels full, itchy, and sometimes I can't get it to pop... I asked my doctor if it might be ETD, she said there would be dizziness and vertigo associated with it.

Sometimes when I stand up and start walking, I do get light headed and the sound gets a little louder in my right ear. I'm worried it's something to do with my blood flow, but at the same time I feel like it might be middle ear related. I also got checked for excess ear wax, there was some and I got it removed. My doctor also said that I had fluid behind my eardrum about 4 weeks ago, but when I went to go see her again last week, she said she doesn't see the fluid anymore?

I'm 22 years old, so I'm very confused and concerned for my health and well-being. I've read some forums on here, and to be honest some of them scared the crap out of me! I asked my doctor for a referral to an ENT, still haven't gotten an appointment from them yet. Then I asked her if I could get an MRA/MRV, she said it would be quicker if the ENT requested one if he thought there needed to be a scan done. She thinks it's nothing to do with my vascular system. I also get sinus pain along my right eyebrow which leads up to my temple. It also feels like my cheekbone muscle cramps up or I need to stretch it out sometimes, it feels sort of sticky on the inside if that makes sense?

If anyone has any tips or ideas on what I should do next or what this might be, or if anyone has experienced anything similar to this at around 22 years old, please let me know!!

 

Hello Maria. I read your post and so much (almost all) of what you described I had or still had. So look even though your doctor thinks it is not vascular related get that MRA! It is best to know for sure. Rule out the more serious stuff and then you will know how to proceed with what I have, PT with unknown cause. Once all of the tests ruled out vascular issues I have now turned to making PT less disruptive to my life. Cut out the caffeine, smoking, alcohol and exercise. Also get some sound distractions during the quiet time like early morning and late at night. You will get a lot of folks like me on the PT forum who have PT but there really is no cause that has been found and medicine hasn’t caught up to explore any other causes. Also stay away from the meds. It will sometimes make matters worse.

Good luck to you.
GJSCAR

 

Hi @GJSCAR, thank you for the reply! I want to for sure rule out the more serious things. I’ve been so scared and frustrated... I just want to make sure nothings wrong but this whole waiting game is making my anxiety worse. I’ve started sleeping with a fan on which helps a lot. I’ll keep you posted on if anything else happens! Thank you again

 

@MariaS If you plug your ear a certain way (as you say), you induce what is termed conductive hearing loss. What this then means is that as sounds from the outside are made quieter (by the act of plugging your ear), internal body sounds are perceived as louder. This phenomenon is called the occlusion effect.

Is your BMI normal for your age?

 

@dingaling yes my BMI is normal for my age! I had no idea about the occlusion effect. So do you think an ENT is the best first step for me as of right now? I always jump to the worst case scenario possible (as does everyone else, probably) so I got nervous about having an aneurysm or tumour.

Also, @GJSCAR, how long have you had your PT for? And did you have regular tinnitus before?

Thanks for both of your replies

 

Hello Maria. I noticed the first signs in September 2017. I never had any other tinnitus except pulsatile. I first went to my primary care doctor who referred me to an ENT. In quick succession I had an MRI, MRA, CATA and the ultimate diagnostic test, a CEREBRAL ANGIOGRAM. All tests came back clear, no vascular issues, nothing in left right of brain, neck, arteries, aortas, absolutely nothing.

I’m the only one who can hear my PT so because all of the specialists I’ve been to are surgeons and there is nothing to fix I had to learn to live with the symptoms. I’m 58 and my neurologist said it might be age related. I live in California and they have a couple clinics here that specializes in tinnitus that I’ve been thinking about looking into. One is connected with the University of California San Francisco.

Good luck and hang in there. You can get a lot of info here. I wish I found the forum earlier.

 

@GJSCAR ahh okay I see. I think I'll just have to wait for the ENT and go from there, hopefully my appointment gets booked soon! I live in Canada, I'm not too sure about whether there are any areas here that have clinics specifically for tinnitus. Also, getting an appointment with any specialist takes ages unless your case is considered urgent, which my doctor seems to think mine isn't. Patience is key, I guess. Thank you for your support! I'll keep you updated on what my ENT says.

 

@MariaS I don't know the Canadian healthcare system but I would have thought had your GP been concerned, he would have marked the ENT referral as urgent.

There was a reason about asking about your BMI but as it's normal for your age, then from that perspective, you have nothing to worry about. PT tends to be common in overweight people but not exclusively so.

If you want peace of mind, then wait for your ENT appointment

 

@dingaling yeah I agree, when I called the ENT office to ask about their waitlist they said that it could take 6 months for an appointment unless it’s considered urgent.
And yes I have normal BMI for my age, so hopefully nothing too serious to worry about!! Thank you once again