Why Are ENTs So Worthless When It Comes to Tinnitus?!

With risk of sounding bitter, how can a problem so grand have so few solutions?

After spending a few days scrolling this forum I feel I know just as much as an ENT (or the 3 that I’ve seen) about tinnitus.

 

Hi @Bambam0,
ENT check for problems with the ear and ear operations but it's Audiology whom can see if hearing aids or white noise generator or CBT can help you.
Love glynis

 

Thanks for your response Glynis! I guess I was looking more in terms of diagnoses to pinpoint what is causing the T.

 

Many people have harsh feeling toward ENT's, myself included. I think it has to do with two things. First, we want to know why we have T and second we want a cure. Sometimes an ENT can provide us with only one or neither and that is very frustrating because we thought we'd get relief from the ENT.

The icing on the cake is that ENT's can be very technical people and sometimes lacking people skills or because of modern health care (In the US at least) don't have time to use their people skills.

We're already at our wits end full of worry and the ENT may have no cause or solution and says deal with it. This frustrates the heck out of us.

 

ENT are medics/surgeons and look specifically for causative physical conditions/abnormalies. Usually, they leave the tinnitus stuff to audiologists/hearing therapists

 

How is tinnitus not considered a physical condition

I mean I'm told it's a symptom of something


But doctors never check what that something is

It's like tinnitus well either spend money you don't have on these hearing aids, spend money you don't have on counselling, or take this happy pill and get out of my office

 

@Bambam0 Good question, it is freekng unbelievable.

 

So basically our options are:

1. See ENT - ”learn to live with it”
2. See Audiologist - “buy these hearing aids”

And isn’t #2 worthless if your hearing is normal?

Am I super off base here?

I have more options for my receding hairline than I do a potentially debilitating symptom. This is unbelievable you guys!

 

Tinnitus is not a physical condition.

Tinnitus is (usually) a sound

Tinnitus is a symptom of something else (that could be physical)

ENTs are not therapists

Good ENTs check thoroughly for any physical causes

In the UK, hearing/sound generators are free

 

If they could safely rule out or confirm at least one cochlear injury, - a lot would be gained...

 

Not in Australia, unless you are a pensioner i.e. over (I think nowadays) 67 YO. I doubt the NHS will keep such things free for that much longer.

Nothing is free in the US.

 

@dingaling but it seem in my case,the symptom is worse than the physical problem. What about other people here?

 

ENTs are just like any other field in medicine. Some good and some bad.

I think the other issues is that Tinnitus can be such a grey area. Neurologists, Audiologists, Dentists, Therapy, Cardiology, etc..

Also, a lot of ENTs are following what they were taught. They are not the ones actually out there researching solutions.

We are consumers of our own health care. If I need to push a doctor to try something or to rule something out then I do that.

 

I've met a couple of Audiologists and while I think they're better than ENT's both of them saw the results of my hearing test and said excitedly, "Looks like someday you'll need hearing aids." I'm assuming hearing aids are sold on a commission basis. I like audiologists more than ENT's.

 

They are worthless because there is really nothing they can do if you have an incurable type of tinnitus which unfortunately is the most common e.g. noise induced ,ototoxicity etc...

I have seen more that 5 ENTS when I first got T, usually got a hearing test and they looked into may ear for wax, infections etc apart from that it was "live with it" response

 

I think the utility of the typical ENT ends with the middle ear and the interface of it to the inner ear. Internal to that becomes the realm of neurology.

 

That's why there is a medical branch neuro-otology.

 

Few solutions? There are NO solutions.

 

Like the Night Parrot, it exists but just try getting to see one.

 

It still bugs men when people say it's not really a physical condition

It's something my body is making happen beyond my control

Since it general feels like it's in the ear and it's hearing related, and every single piece of advice is always "get an ENT to check it out".........

Honestly it's so Kafkaesque it's surreal

The hate on for ENTs is because unless you're one of the lucky ones who got an ENT who cares.... you'll find seeing an ENT for anything other than earwax and an obvious visible infection is a demeaning and demoralizing experience, you'll be treated with contempt and like you're crazy

 

@IMCalifornia Why are they saying this. It is worse than a lot of physical condition.

 

Is it that mythical in your neck of the woods?
I saw one after half a dozen ENTs were struggling to figure out what was happening to me. He was expensive but he figured it out and also did my surgery.
When it comes to dealing with my hearing, I don't go to anybody else now.

 

Why is my ENT Doctor useless?

Over the years I have read many posts at tinnitus forums. Therefore, it is of no surprise to see familiar questions and comments recurring especially by those that are new to this condition. Understandably, some people are in distress and are seeking help. They want reassurance that all will be well. Many want to hear the right answers to their questions or at least their version of it because anything less doesn’t compute. Will it go away? How long does it take to habituate? Will I get my life back? When will a cure be found? The list goes on.

In addition to this, I often hear people say that their ENT doctor doesn’t understand their tinnitus or what they are going through. After all, they are supposed to be the experts right? Sometimes it can leave a person feeling desperate and at a loss, not knowing what to do or where to go for help. This realisation, comes after having various tests have been done on their auditory system only to be told by their doctor, that no abnormalities where found. The advice given is to leave things as they are for now and see what happens.

Some people don’t believe in the wait and see approach and have even said their ENT doctor is completely useless when no help has been offered. Whilst everyone is entitled to an opinion, I don’t agree with this statement. However, I do understand how one can come to this conclusion, especially when the bedside manner of some doctors leaves a lot to be desired. This needs to improve if a patient is to feel proper care and consideration is being afforded to them, because we know that tinnitus can be very debilitating when severe and can affect one’s emotions considerably.

The ear is a very delicate organ and if there is no underlying medical condition causing the tinnitus, such as: pain in the ears, deafness and dizziness or balance problems. The advice to wait and see what happens is usually correct. Many people learn to habituate within the first six months sometimes a little longer and it has been known go completely away. Too early an intervention could make matters worse.

In the early stages of tinnitus, it is not unusual to experience stress, anxiety and even some depression. These symptoms usually improve with time. Having a word with your GP about this can be beneficial, as medication can be prescribed to help you cope and they don’t have to be taken long term. I am a believer in using sound enrichment; during the day and especially at night. Whether this is via a dedicated sound machine or playing low-level non-intrusive music by the bedside. The volume level set to just below the tinnitus.

ENT doctors are important health professionals and I have a lot of respect for their skill and expertise. They know all about the anatomy of the ear and are able to treat it medically or surgically. However, in my opinion they are not tinnitus experts, which I believe calls for another set of skills that the majority of them don’t have. This is the ability to know, understand and empathize, with what a tinnitus patient is going through when the condition is loud and intrusive.

My consultant is an Audiovestibular physician whom I have a lot of respect for. She once told me that I know more about tinnitus than her. She explained because never having experienced it. For this reason, when there is no underlying medical condition causing the tinnitus a person is sometimes referred to a Hearing Therapist or Audiologist trained in tinnitus management.

This can involve counselling, wearing devices such as hearing aids or white noise generators. Treatments such as TRT, CBT and Mindfulness and relaxation therapy can also be helpful. These health professionals help their patients by showing them a way forward and demystifying a lot of the negativity that surrounds this condition. Not surprisingly, this level of understanding and empathy doesn’t always come from training alone, for some of these people also have tinnitus. Over the years I have met quite a few Hearing Therapists and Audiologists at tinnitus Internet forums helping people. At some point they have relayed to me that they have tinnitus or were born with it as my hearing therapist was.

Michael

 

It was an ENT that CAUSED my T, H and HL... All in less than 10 minutes. All from one noisy microsuction procedure. I am astonished by how little knowledge an ENT can have regarding loud noise directly in the ear! Oh, and how they are quick to cover their mistakes by saying that all the hearing issues are due to the patient having psychological issues. Unbelievable and sickening.

 

Well sadly the lack of understanding (and frankly empathy) on the part of the medical scientific community leaves them with few options. Don't worry though, I'm sure after a $500 intake appointment and $600 hearing test at a tinnitus "clinic" they will prescribe you a handy pair of $3000 hearing aids that will come out of pocket and improved your quality of life by 5-10%.

You'd honestly be better off using masking videos on Youtube. Sadly, that is all we have. No one wants to hurt the brain, they want to trick it into stopping signal generation and getting your memory to dump the noise too. Rather than what should be done, which is damaging and or destroying the brain stem area where the signal is thought to come from.

 

I feel bad for posting something negative...

Quick, someone tell a positive ENT story!

 

The ENT Consultant I first saw when I got tinnitus was absolutely no help at all - it was very much don't take up a second of my time - there is no treatment available.

Of course if you're one of the "little people" they say that - they can't be bothered to be honest. For VIPs it's a very different response - note the immediate treatment Charles Michel the Belgian Prime Minister got when he suffered hearing loss and tinnitus from an Acoustic Shock .

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/30/belgium-pm-charles-michel-princess-astrid-hearing

"The prime minister must follow a number of treatments within 48 hours after the incident" - This included I believe HBOT - probably the best available treatment for those who have just suffered from sudden tinnitus - but it's not "audiology" and therefore no financial slice available for the ENT consultant - so they aren't interested.

 

We had snow flurries today and it was beautiful!

 

I have had 2 very good ENTs that have been compassionate and working with me. They know their stuff. They have Tinnitus programs where I go that uses dentists, neurologists, ents, therapists, etc. They all communicate with each other without me telling them to. They manage my situation as a whole and not isolated to their specialty.

*for the record I had an ENT cause me ENS which is almost worse than Tinnitus for me but that’s a whole different story.

 

The best ENT are the who also suffer from this.

The others could even make things worse, thr first one I went tried to do microsuction on me... Now thst I think about that it really anoys me