Pulsatile Tinnitus (Whoosh)

[whooshwhoosh]

Hi,
I've had PT for probably a year now, maybe 8 months? I never wrote it down and can't remember when it started. At first it was a bit annoying. Then I had breakdowns because the noise was so loud and wouldn't go away and drives me insane! I can't afford expensive tests so I have to pick only the ones I believe will really help me.
I went to an ENT and he said I was SOOL unless I wanted an MRI. At the time I said I'll pass, because the result of the MRI would only provide him information on whether surgery to thicken the bone in my ear would make the sound go away.
The tinnitus is right ear only, whooshing heartbeat noise that I believe is my blood rushing through. It goes away if I push on my carotid artery, so I often sleep with my hand on it or a pillow pushed to silence the noise.
I have a large lymph node next to the source of the noise and have considered that perhaps when I'm sick and it gets inflamed, the lymph node is hurting something in the area. The noise was never there until after my wisdom teeth were removed - I believe the noise came about 2-4 months after they were removed. Possible correlation?
Thanks guys!


ETA: I have also had a hearing test done which was normal.

 

[Matt01]

Personally I would get an MRI if pulsatile. Unlikely it will show anything, but I think it's the right course of action.

 

[billie48]

Sorry to hear your suffering with PT. I don't have PT. My T is an ultra high pitch dog whistle. Perhaps you can message a notable member here and her name is Karen. Karen has PT and has advised many new members with PT. Hopefully she will read this thread. If not, just message her about your condition. Take care.

 

[Karen]

Hi, Whoosh Whoosh,

I can totally relate to your situation, as I also have pulsatile tinnitus in my right ear, as well as regular tinnitus in the same ear. It can be so totally annoying it is hard to concentrate on anything else. At least, that's how it was for me in the beginning. I've had mine for four and a half years now, and it seems to have calmed down somewhat, so that I can sleep again and live a more normal life. So far, the tests I've had include an MRI and MRA (with contrast), a CT scan of the temporal bone area, and a Doppler of my carotid arteries. All those tests have turned up nothing, which was good, but I am still hoping some day to find the source of my problem.

For peace of mind, you may want to get tested, and I understand you are concerned about how much these tests will cost, etc. I can't help but think that your pulsating may be related to the removal of your wisdom teeth and the swollen lymph node, so I was wondering if you might want to try going to a dentist or dental surgeon first, to be sure all is well, and that you don't have an infection of some sort.

If that proves not to be helpful, then I think an MRI would be a good idea, just to rule out anything dangerous. On Whooshers.com, they often recommend going to a neurologist or neurotologist for pulsatile tinnitus, as they often have a better understanding of what PT is. If you have one in your area, you could call first and be sure they do know what pulsatile tinnitus is, before you schedule an appointment.

I wish you success in finding out more about what could be causing your problem, and hope you'll keep us posted on how you're doing.

Best wishes,
Karen

 

[DeeNee]

Hi all..

Im female, 29yo. Been suffering from PT for at least 2 years now. It started one morning when i suddenly felt something different; i couldnt hear quite clearly on my right ear (about 30-40% decrease from my normal hearing)..and there's mild constant wooshing sounds that match my heart pulse (i've realized this when reading about PT on the internet).
Since then, ive seen many ENT's and neurologist and have done several tests: blood tests, audiometry, EEG, carotid doppler, MRI/MRA (no contrast)..all gave clean results. mostly no abnormalities.

Till now, i've had rounds of oral medicines, hiperbaric treatment, even accupuncture..yet the results almost none. After 2-3 months of doctors visits, tests, and treatments..i took some rest, try to make peace with my mind, lower my anxiety, and convinced myself that i already done everything i could..although no clear cause of my PT revealed yet.

Now..i started to get used to the sounds. Most times i'm not aware of it especially when im busy. Hopefully it wont become worse in the future..

@Karen: seems like we have common condition, mine also objective PT, the sound doesnt go away eventhough i press the carotid area on my neck. Do you have hearing loss too? Do you think i should have another MRI/A test with contrast? Ive asked this before to my neurologist and he said that if what i worried about is some sort of tumor ..it will be seen even in no-contrast MRI/ MRI. And mine came all clear.

Not sure what im supposed to do next..just hoping theres some sort of miracle that this PT of mine be gone forever and my hearing's back normal. *sigh*

 

[Karen]

Hi, @DeeNee,

Thanks for tagging me. Yes, we do seem to have a similar condition. I also have objective pulsatile tinnitus, plus regular tinnitus (do you have that, too?) in my right ear only. And, yes, I do have some hearing loss in that ear. Mine also started suddenly, about two weeks after I started blood pressure meds for the first time. I'm off the meds now, but I still have both the PT and the hissing/ringing.

I think it's very encouraging that you've partly habituated to it, and that's what I'm trying to do, too. It hasn't been easy; mine was really bad in the beginning, and I had adrenal fatigue along with it. But now, things seem to be somewhat better. When I stay really busy, I can relegate it to the background. At night, I can sleep most of the time, too, although the pulsating is annoying, and can sometimes make for less than restful sleep.

Should you have another MRI/MRA test, with contrast? Well, that's hard to say. Some people believe you should keep trying to find out the cause of the PT, in the hope that it can be cured. But I'm not so sure that there is always a definite cause.

On Whooshers.com, it is suggested that you try having another doctor read your scans, to see if there is something that was missed. My suggestion would be to try getting another opinion, if you are concerned, to see if another doctor can see something that the first one couldn't. I tried that (went to several doctors), and they were unable to find anything, except to suggest that I have otosclerosis, and could benefit from a stapedectomy (for hearing loss, not PT).

I'll be interested to hear what you decide to do, and hope that things continue to improve for you. It sounds like habituation may be a possibility for you!

Best wishes,
Karen

 

[Susana M.]

Hi,
I also had pulsatile tinnitus (whooshing sound) in the left ear for about 3 months and it started right after I left the dentist office. I had my upper left lateral incisor extracted so i knew it was either the extraction, damage done with the needle and/or the overdose of anesthesia. The dentist ended up giving me seven shots when the maximum allowed was 4 shots as the anesthetic was not kicking in. Later, i found out that when there is infected tissue the anesthesia doesn't work well. I thought the whooshing sound was blood rushing through a vein or artery that maybe there was damage done by one of the injections or the extraction, so i ended up going to several doctors, more than ten doctors cause they either told me it was anxiety/panick attacks or could hear the whooshing sound with the stethoscope but didn't know what it was. My cardiologist started talking about panic attacks when you have too much stress and when he started listening with his stethoscope he was quiet and looked puzzle (he heard the whooshing sound) and told me he had no idea what i had but it was not related to the heart. So he recommended me going to a neurologist.

I had another tooth problem on the right side, a cavity that needed a filling, so i decided not to wait and went to another dentist. A few days after the dental procedure tinnitus started on the right inward side of the ear and back side of ear, this one was not a whooshing sound moving upwards but like a nerve inside contracting and expanding sideways and it was more like a nerve spasming. Some days after, i felt moving sensations like some cold liquid moving downwards from the top of my head to the right side of my face. My upper left side of my head and upper palate started moving spasming without control and strange electrical currents moving in my chest like some gastric movements in my chest and after a few days it started moving around. Days later, i started having tachycardia that will last for about 5 minutes. The right side of the face started drooping and spasming, and I thought i was having a stroke. I ended up going to the hospital several times over this; had an Mri of head and chest, ct scan of head and face, Mra of head and chest with and without contrast (everything was negative). While in the hospital, I saw an emergency doctor, an infectious disease doctor, a cardiologist, a neurologist, and was told maybe its an irritation to a nerve and was discharged with tachycardia and paresthesia.

I, also had sinusitis, inflammation of the sinus, which i never had before caused by this dental procedure. I looked for videos in internet on how to massage face neck and head done by doctors and therapists and decided to try at my own risk since my doctors were of no help. I tried all the massages i found online for about half an hour everyday for around two months since it was relieving the inflammation in face and sinus.

I went to 4 ENT doctors and was given spray steroids, which was of no help. I was told by one doctor to drink lots of water to stay hydrated which i did, even though i don't think it relates to the sinusitis or tinnitus.
There was nothing to be done anymore about the tinnitus and strange sounds ! This was making me sad and driving me crazy. My sister told me to learn to live with this problem; and I refused, i would pray that this would go away ...

After around 3 months more or less the whooshing sound on left side of face and tinnitus on the right side started gradually to stop on its own. I was told by a dentist that this was 2 different problems. It seems to me too much coincidence that i was having sounds in both ears, but she is the expert and not me. Its been 7 months since this incidents and the sounds are completely gone. Thanks to the lord !
Susana M.