Visual Disturbance / Aura, Migraine Connection Possible?

[Aaron44126]

Ok, so something happened this afternoon that is making me question the ENT's labyrinthitis diagnosis.

I experienced a "migraine halo" or "migraine visual aura". My tinnitus is relatively new, but I've had these auras on and off for nearly 10 years. To me, it looks like what you see after someone flashes a camera in your face... a strange white light that's sort of there and sort of not. It may turn into a more strange visual disturbance, in this case it pretty much took over the entire right periphery of my right eye. Like, whatever I was focused on was clear, but the stuff off to the right was out of wack. Usually these last maybe half an hour or so for me, but today's lasted nearly 90 minutes (though the disturbance died down a good bit after about 40 minutes).

People often have this sort of thing ahead of a migraine headache attack, but I've never experienced the associated headache. That's also been known to happen, apparently, the "silent migraine" is a thing.

The visual disturbance was right eye only. My tinnitus is right ear only. I started looking into the connection between tinnitus and a migraine, and obviously that is there. I also found this, and I've been experiencing several of the symptoms listed under "ear", including the crawly ear and stabbing ear, which I had previously associated with ETD (self-diagnosed that one).
http://www.migrainedisorders.org/what-is-a-migraine-disorder/signs-and-symptoms

I also experienced brain zaps earlier this week (sort of vibrating shock feeling on the right side of my head, lasting a very brief time, less than a second each) and my tinnitus has taken on a distinct "electric" quality. It often sounds like an electric buzz and sometimes at night it feels like it is zapping the inside of my brain somewhere.

Could my tinnitus be caused by one long stupid silent migraine? ("Silent"... ha ha ha, oh the irony.) We're going on eight weeks now, though it seems to be dying down.

I'm calling the doctor's office tomorrow to see if they think there may be any connection between the aura and the tinnitus and to start the investigation if need be... But I was just wondering if anyone else has had, or heard of, a similar experience.

 

[Anima]

Ok, so something happened this afternoon that is making me question the ENT's labyrinthitis diagnosis.

I experienced a "migraine halo" or "migraine visual aura". My tinnitus is relatively new, but I've had these auras on and off for nearly 10 years. To me, it looks like what you see after someone flashes a camera in your face... a strange white light that's sort of there and sort of not. It may turn into a more strange visual disturbance, in this case it pretty much took over the entire right periphery of my right eye. Like, whatever I was focused on was clear, but the stuff off to the right was out of wack. Usually these last maybe half an hour or so for me, but today's lasted nearly 90 minutes (though the disturbance died down a good bit after about 40 minutes).

People often have this sort of thing ahead of a migraine headache attack, but I've never experienced the associated headache. That's also been known to happen, apparently, the "silent migraine" is a thing.

The visual disturbance was right eye only. My tinnitus is right ear only. I started looking into the connection between tinnitus and a migraine, and obviously that is there. I also found this, and I've been experiencing several of the symptoms listed under "ear", including the crawly ear and stabbing ear, which I had previously associated with ETD (self-diagnosed that one).
http://www.migrainedisorders.org/what-is-a-migraine-disorder/signs-and-symptoms

I also experienced brain zaps earlier this week (sort of vibrating shock feeling on the right side of my head, lasting a very brief time, less than a second each) and my tinnitus has taken on a distinct "electric" quality. It often sounds like an electric buzz and sometimes at night it feels like it is zapping the inside of my brain somewhere.

Could my tinnitus be caused by one long stupid silent migraine? ("Silent"... ha ha ha, oh the irony.) We're going on eight weeks now, though it seems to be dying down.

I'm calling the doctor's office tomorrow to see if they think there may be any connection between the aura and the tinnitus and to start the investigation if need be... But I was just wondering if anyone else has had, or heard of, a similar experience.

Aaron, I too have silent migraine with aura and I experiment most of what you have explained.
Mine started long before my tinnitus onset, it was after a failed lasik surgery of my left eye. I also have eye snow since then.
My tinnitus onset (13 years ago) was antibiotic related, and it happened a few years after the lasik procedure. My tinnitus is mainly in my left ear, which is 90% deft (apparently, otosclerosis related).
Since the lasik surgery, I have had lots of problems with my left eye. Two years back, due to some strokes in this eye and to avoid more serious complications, I was given a laser treatment to fix the little vein that was bleeding inside of my retina. The procedure was so painful, you can't imagine how bad that was. Since then, from time to time, my eye hurts and also get some headache,sometimes independently of the silent migraine, it depends. In my case, I don't think that tinnitus and migraine are related, but I have to admit that when I get the headache or the silent migraine, my tinnitus rings lauder. why? No one knows. My ENT and GP are absolutely helpless, so I just don't talk to them about it, even the retinologist who I visit once a year has no idea why this happens.
I've asked an appointment with a neurosurgeon, maybe he will be able to help me, who knows. It will take a while though, actually our national health system is not what it used to be before the crisis, but I'll update after I see him.

I wish you well.

 

[Aaron44126]

Aaron, I too have silent migraine with aura and I experiment most of what you have explained.

Thanks for your reply. After thinking it through more, I think that I jumped the gun on linking my tinnitus and the migraine aura / silent migraine, but the similarity between the ear feeling symptoms that I had and the symptoms in the link that I posted is sort of hard to ignore... I will keep an eye on it and talk it through with the physician during my next appointment.

 

[JasonP]

Ok, so something happened this afternoon that is making me question the ENT's labyrinthitis diagnosis.

I experienced a "migraine halo" or "migraine visual aura". My tinnitus is relatively new, but I've had these auras on and off for nearly 10 years. To me, it looks like what you see after someone flashes a camera in your face... a strange white light that's sort of there and sort of not. It may turn into a more strange visual disturbance, in this case it pretty much took over the entire right periphery of my right eye. Like, whatever I was focused on was clear, but the stuff off to the right was out of wack. Usually these last maybe half an hour or so for me, but today's lasted nearly 90 minutes (though the disturbance died down a good bit after about 40 minutes).

People often have this sort of thing ahead of a migraine headache attack, but I've never experienced the associated headache. That's also been known to happen, apparently, the "silent migraine" is a thing.

The visual disturbance was right eye only. My tinnitus is right ear only. I started looking into the connection between tinnitus and a migraine, and obviously that is there. I also found this, and I've been experiencing several of the symptoms listed under "ear", including the crawly ear and stabbing ear, which I had previously associated with ETD (self-diagnosed that one).
http://www.migrainedisorders.org/what-is-a-migraine-disorder/signs-and-symptoms

I also experienced brain zaps earlier this week (sort of vibrating shock feeling on the right side of my head, lasting a very brief time, less than a second each) and my tinnitus has taken on a distinct "electric" quality. It often sounds like an electric buzz and sometimes at night it feels like it is zapping the inside of my brain somewhere.

Could my tinnitus be caused by one long stupid silent migraine? ("Silent"... ha ha ha, oh the irony.) We're going on eight weeks now, though it seems to be dying down.

I'm calling the doctor's office tomorrow to see if they think there may be any connection between the aura and the tinnitus and to start the investigation if need be... But I was just wondering if anyone else has had, or heard of, a similar experience.

Hey Aaron, I'm curious, when you had the visual aura or brain zaps, were you withdrawing from an SSRI or some other kind of drug?

 

[Aaron44126]

No, I've never taken anything like that...

In the end, pretty sure that the visual aura was unrelated and just coincidental. However, the brain zaps, that was something and had to be related. They came when my tinnitus was at its strangest state which lasted most of September 2017.

 

[Arseny]

I'm having a migraine right now without any exposure to noise today.

Left side of my head aches and burns and one of the sounds in left side of the head only (electric hiss with vibration) has increased from 2/10 to 8/10 for no reason.

I think there's definitely some connection.

I'm think about doing Botox injection for migraines.