Frusemide and tinnitus

[1AnneMcC]

Morning AllI've had mild, ignorable tinnitus for years.

Last October I was prescribed ramipril for BP. I was experiencing quite a lot of stress at the time and really didn't want medication.

The ramipril caused my legs and ankles to swell so next GP prescribed frusemide.

Due to work commitments I didn't take it on occasions when going to toilet wouldn't be easy. BP varies between 165/90 and 154/80.

I checked frusemide side effects 2 days ago and saw that it could affect tinnitus. But not common.

My tinnitus has increased a thousand fold lately. So much so it is really affecting g my life.

So I'm stopping g the frusemide in the hopes it will help reduce my tinnitus. Not guaranteed.

I really wish I'd known this before I started taking it. It is horrendous, and that's a word I never use.

I'm trying natural, diet, weight etc, ways to manage BP.

Any advice?

[Lowerfield_no_more]

I have also suffered from tinnitus for many years, and have noticed it has got worse in the last year or two. Although in my case it is not helped by the fact that I play saxophone and until recently rode a motorbike! However if you decide you need to stop taking frusemide you should consult with your GP first to establish what alternatives there are to treat the condition it has been prescribed for, but I am sure you were going to do that anyway.

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

I developed a degree of hearing loss and tinnitus after being basically bed ridden for two weeks with a bad bout of Voldemort Delta. When I was on a course of Furosemide for the macerated wounds on my foot the tinnitus got no worse but it worsened considerably with the antibiotic Co-trimoxazole which caused multiple side effects with the consultant taking me off them and putting it on my drug allergies list.

As Lowerfield_no_more has said you need to seek advice from a medical professional; first. Just stopping a BP related medication can cause a dangerous rebound in BP!

[PinkKizzie]

Hi 1AnneMcC, like Lowerfield_no_more, I have had tinnitus for years. I wear a hearing aid in one ear, and as soon as I wear it the tinnitus disappears in that ear. I take furosemide but don't think it's made my tinnitus worse. I also play a musical instrument (keyboard) and I think that doesn't help the tinnitus. Best wishes.

[Anothernewbie in reply to PinkKizzie]

Same here. I was given a hearing aid for tinnitus. Still get it but only overnight when the hearing aids come out. Furosemide has not made any different to tinnitus.

[PinkKizzie in reply to Anothernewbie]

Hi Anothernewbie, thank you for your reply. It's strange how the tinnitus disappears when the hearing aid goes in. Useless info - Will.i.am and Keanu Reeves both have tinnitus. Will says he doesn't know what silence hears like. Take care.

[nilmonisikdar40]

Hi there, I am sorry that you are affected by tinnitus which is so annoying. I guess you have consulted ENT soecialist about it and if so has he suggested any device to mask the symptoms. None of medication as far as I know can aggravate symptoms of tinnitus. However, since you are on frusemide which is diuretic , it is best to check the the kidney function test because it can lower the potassium level in blood. See what it says. Regards.

[1AnneMcC in reply to nilmonisikdar40]

Thank you. Waiting to see ENT consultant. Tinnitus being affected by frusemide is quite rare and I was checking for another reason when I saw the Tinnitus info. It also says stopping may not improve the noise. After 2 days no change.

[DWizza]

I also suffer from tinnitus post nstemi and quadruple CABG July 2023. It was raging when I was on the usual cocktail of meds , clopidogrel, pantaprazole, half a 1.25mg tablet ramipril, 1.25mg bisoprolol , aspirin , 80mg artovastatin.

I have noticed an incredible reduction in the tinnitus. It may have coincided with stopping the clopidogrel (stopped after 12 months) , and reducing the bisoprolol to half a 1.25mg

( consultant says I could come off ) my hands and feet also feel warmer , I used to suffer terribly with cold hands and feet .

It looked like most of the meds I was on had tinnitus listed as a possible side affect.

[bearbear5662]

I have non stop tinnitus since a flue 20 years ago. 7 days a week all day both ears .. lts like jets on a plane sound . If number 10 on a radio dial is loudest most of my days were like that .. I nearly went mental... I now take vitamin B12 and it lowers it to like a 3 but does not stop but I get a respite.

[bikerider00 in reply to bearbear5662]

How confident are you that the B12 is the trigger for reducing your tinnitus?

[bearbear5662 in reply to bikerider00]

Well it works for me

[1AnneMcC in reply to bearbear5662]

I'll try that. Thank you.

[Scotsman53]

I believe there's a very good tinnitus forum on HealthUnlocked.

[PinkKizzie in reply to Scotsman53]

'morning Scotsman53, I joined the tinnitus forum a few months ago, but after a week I had to come off because I found when I talked about it, my tinnitus seemed to get worse. A good but difficult forum. Take care

[Telstarred1953]

I have tinnitus and have never had any medication at all.I know it is a nuisance and can be very debilitating,but I have learned to block the noise ,because the more your brain listens the worse it is, I try to mask the sound by training my brain to concentrate on other things.It is hard but I have had the condition for some years.I think the more stressed you get the worse it is, also tiredness doesn’t help.

[1AnneMcC in reply to Telstarred1953]

Years ago if I noticed the hissing I would stretch my neck and spine and it would go. Not now and you're right, once you hear it it gets worse. Thank you.

[MountainGoat52]

Hi 1AnneMcC,

I developed tinnitus after my triple bypass operation and get multiple frequencies which are hard to block out, particularly when it is quiet. I have been trying to assess whether this is due to medication, but have not been able to reach a conclusion. I am allergic to loop and thiazide diuretucs, so it cannot be a diuretic that is the cause.

My first thought about your medication is why did your GP not just change your blood pressure medication rather than add more medication? This happened to me when my GP prescribed Lansoprozole when I did not have stomach issues with my prescribed medication. As it turned out I am intolerant of PPIs, so my GP just created a problem.

Maybe a chat with your GP about a change of blood pressure medication will solve the water retention issue and maybe your tinnitus will become tolerable once again.

All the best,

Gerald

[EdtheDead]

Tinnitus is vastly misunderstood and vastly ignored by the medical profession. It's never taken seriously because it's not life threatening. I've had it for 3 years, it was sudden onset. When I was prescribed my plethora of heart meds I noticed a significant spike in the volume and this continued for 16 months. Cardiologist took me off Clopidogrel and most significantly Ramipril. Tinnitus eased and is now manageable to the extent I can ignore it.You'll never get a definitive answer to the question as to whether a certain drug can spike Tinnitus because they simply don't know enough about the condition or don't understand it.

I feel your pain and frustration.

[Pheobgh1]

I got very distressing tinnitus when I took amlodipine. It took several weeks to wear off after I stopped taking it. Felodipine was prescribed instead and the tinnitus didn't come back. However I was taken off felodipine during a spell in hospital (not sure why) and am now due to start ramipril. I'm hoping it won't start the tinnitus again.

[SaxBox]

I find beetroot extract taken as tablets helps to bring down my BP

[bikerider00]

I noticed someone else mentioned hearing aids. I've had (mildish....) tinnitus for probably best part of 25 years. I had always understood that hearing aids couldn't help with it. However 3 years ago I bit the bullet and got hearing aids for mild (ish) hearing loss. Which had been impacting me for a few years. The audiologist told me that in fact they could help. And lo and behold, my tinnitus improved to the point I rarely notice it. Except for now as I'm writing this because its triggering me to focus on it

So for anyone with tinnitus that doesn't have hearing aids: I'd suggest getting your general hearing checked out and see if it could benefit from hearing aids, as the might have the side effect of improving your tinnitus.

[Pollyanna23]

You could be right about the furosemide,I have been on 40 mg for seven years now but only this last year have suffering with tinnitus. I am waiting for an appointment to see throat & ear at the hospital but apparently it’s not urgent so just have to wait. I had a hearing test six months back and the audiologist wrote to my GP asking them to refer me for a MRI scan but my GP has ignored this soi guess I am just on the waiting list probably like hundreds of other people.