Should I Take Antibiotics (Amoxicillin) for a Tinnitus Spike (Throat Infection/Virus)?

Hi everyone.

I am now almost 4 weeks into a tinnitus spike that a doctor told me is being caused by a throat infection/virus. I was advised to wait two weeks, but as nothing has changed I have now been prescribed a 3 week course of Amoxicillin. Is this safe to use? I'm not sure what to do as I don't want to risk making it worse.

I've had noise-induced tinnitus for 5 years, and it has never been affected by any infection etc. before. Interestingly, my twin sister, who did not have tinnitus before this, has also been diagnosed with the same issues by a doctor after developing tinnitus a couple of weeks ago. Is that a good pointer that it is indeed being caused by an infection? And if so, does that mean it will recede somewhat once we recover?

Thank you for any help and all help and advice.

 

The link below is list of ototoxic drugs. I didn't find Amoxicillin on the list although that doesn't mean that it can't or won't contribute to tinnitus.

https://www.ata.org/sites/default/files/Drugs Associated with Tinnitus 2013_Updated2017.pdf

 

I've used amoxicillin in the past without any issues. I imagine that your doctor suspects a bacterial infection, not a virus, if s/he prescribed antibiotics.

 

any antibiotics is system related! Tinnitus is a bent hair either before or after teh ear drum. I am trying hot water bottle with cold water against my tinnitus ear..right ear. Hope it works.

 

I agree with Greg. I’ve used amoxicillin many times and it’s unlikely to do anything to your tinnitus. There is more chance of your tinnitus spiking because of the stress you’re putting on yourself worrying about it.

 

Yes.

 

I posted a few days ago about amoxicillin prescribed for a throat infection my doctor thinks is causing my recent tinnitus increase. Thanks to all your helpful replies, I decided to just bite the bullet and take the antibiotic.

After four doses (500mg, 3x a day), my tinnitus spiked badly. It is very loud and high pitched, but the most disturbing thing about it is how loud it is in my left ear, which has always been my "good" ear, even since my spike started at the end of January. I immediately stopped taking the medication, but over 48 hours later it remains the same. Prior to this, the tinnitus was fluctuating, and I was having better and worse days with the volume and intensity. Now it's just sitting at one pitch and volume all the time.

I am also experiencing more ear pain than I was before.

Is it really possible that amoxicillin, supposedly the safest antibiotic for tinnitus patients, has caused a spike? Does anyone have any experience of this, and if so, what was the outcome? I'm having some other problems in my life and I really don't know if I can cope with this being permanent. I will be going back to my doctor tomorrow, but this has been driving me crazy all weekend.

Thank you.

 

Is it possible your infection is causing it to spike? Mine spiked definitely from my ear infection, which I realize is more ear involved. I may have to go back and be out on something besides amoxicillin because it’s not really doing the job.

 

I think the infection is the cause of the initial spike. However the fact that it's gone through the roof since I took the fourth dose of Amoxicillin is what's disturbing me. Saw the doctor today and he didn't seem concerned, he said my eardrums are "bulging" so it could be that the infection is getting worse before it gets better. He advised me to finish taking the course of antibiotics but as you can imagine, I'm a little reluctant to do that. Not really sure where to go from here, wish I'd never taken them to begin with :/

 

If your ear drums are bulging you could have fluid in your ears like mine and it definitely made my tinnitus spike!!! So it could be the antibiotics or infection, hard to tell. Augmentin (amoxicillin-clauvate) didn’t spike mine. Just the ear infection itself. Sorry that you’re not feeling well or it’s not working for you

 

I think it's related to your ear infection and not your antibiotics. There is no reason it could be your antibiotics. For me it's just that your ear got more infected and that spiked the tinnitus.
I would strongly advise you to keep going with the antibiotics and treat the infection.

 

@Liv101, I'm in the exact same situation right now. I have had a horrible spike in tinnitus after taking 4 tabs of Amox-Clav for a sinus infection. How did you end up? Did you take the full course of antibiotics or stop them? Did your tinnitus ever go back down to pre-sickness "normal" levels and, if so, how long did that take?

Thanks!
Stacey