Evening everyone, I was, wondering if ear wax removal can make tinnitus worse.
I've booked in for next week at Specsavers but keep wondering if it will make the T sound louder.
It's loud enough and seems to have a mind of its own. Grateful for answers please 🙏😊
I had my ears suctioned yesterday afternoon, impacted wax, so at least I can hear better. Because of my poor hearing the tinnitus got much worse over the last few weeks. This is the way my brain makes up for the strain of hearing badly. The audiologist who performed the procedure (who himself suffers from T and counsels T sufferers) agreed that the T should now gradually go down in volume over the next few days. Certainly it’s less intrusive today.
I was investigating syringing a few weeks ago. Apparently only some GP’s in the UK do this procedure, they do not have to under their contract. The nursing assistant who actually perform the procedure will only do so if they cannot see the eardrum. At least that’s the case in my GP practice.
How much to Specsavers charge, and are you having syringing or suctioning? I’d be interested to know.
Morning£55 for both ears and its suction method... I'm a little bit weary of it.Good news that your T has calmed down 😊
Wow I need to move to your area then. Mine is £90 for one £160 or £170 for both
Day light robbery!
Hi Maesy
I had my ears microsuctioned a few weeks ago, it made no difference to the T at all. My hearing seemed a bit better!
Thanks for your reply... Still not sure about it 😊
Had my ears syringed twice many years ago, the first time I walked out of the surgery to deafening traffic noise, started my car it sounded like a bag of bones rattling.
The second time I did not notice any difference, now my ears are clear.
Take Care
Mike
Hi Maesy,As the audiologist first checked that your ears are blocked, you then need to use olive oil drops for 2 weeks to soften the wax.
I had it done a couple of weeks ago at a local audiologist £85.
Did not make my Tinnitus any worse but also no better!!
it may be a coincidence that my T started shortly after having my ears suctioned however I had it in one ear, then went to my hospital for an ent check where they did it again.
A few weeks on I went back to the hospital as my T had got worse & the Dr insisted on doing it again & now I have T in both ears.
Make your own choice, plenty of people have had no problems & it could well be that the repetition is what caused the problem.
BTW the first suction was by a non NHS & non medical private company.
I'm sorry to hear that but I've heard it can aggrovate T and course it. Yes I will probably wait, I know I'm not up for aggrovating the T as its quite loud at times anyway.Thank you for your reply 😊
I had microsuction in one ear over a year ago at specsavers and had tinnitus ever since. I did not have it before. It's a tough decision as everyone is different. I woul never have it again, cost me tinnitus and £55! Bad deal!
That's harsh.... I'm not having it. Not brave enough.... Thanks for your reply. I'm sorry you have T now. 😔😔
I had a bad experience with microsuction back in July.
My ears seem to produce a lot of wax, and for over 20 years I had this sorted out at my GP surgery once a year. They used water irrigation, which many people often refer to as syringing. I put olive oil drops in each ear for 7 to 10 days first, and the procedure always went well for me. It was comfortable, wax was removed, no problems. Crucially, no worsening of my tinnitus.
Then Covid came along, and at first my surgery were doing no irrigation at all. Then 6 months ago they told me to put olive oil drops in for two weeks. Then if the wax had not come out, put bicarbonate of soda drops in for a further 2 weeks. If wax still not gone, they would then let me book an appointment for the nurse to use irrigation.
Now, by this time I had two year's wax build up in my ears, and one ear was really bad, the worst I had ever known. Plus I was due to go on holiday, so I booked in for microsuction at a local audiologist instead.
The plus point was, they did get all the wax out of both ears. However, I found the procedure very noisy, and it seems to have made the tinnitus in my left ear rather worse. Also, my right ear was previously ok, now it seems to have developed a very, very slight tinnitus.
The microsuction in my T ear was quite traumatic. The nozzle is in the ear canal, so relatively close to the ear drum, and I had to endure what sounded like a loud screeching sound. as the wax was sucked out. The procedure was made worse by the operative going at it hammer and tongs, with no respite periods.
So I will be very wary about having it done again.
However, there is a big dilemma. Some people like me just have to have the wax removed every year or two, so some way has to be found.
I am hoping that my own GP will re-instate irrigation as a routine offer, without having to jump through the hoop of 4 week's drops first. That will never work for me, I've never had a single instance where wax has dribbled out on its own with just drops. Also, one of the bottles of bicarbonate of soda drops I researched specifically said NOT to use if you have tinnitus.
If the GP still won't do it, there do seem to be a very small number of audiologists who will offer irrigation as well as microsuction. Do check online for that. Specsavers, by the way, do microsuction only.
In fairness, many people do have microsuction, and have no problems. At the end of the day it is a personal judgement call.
One piece of advice I would give if going for microsuction is make sure you tell the operative that you have tinnitus, and request that they halt the procedure for 20 seconds or so each time you ask, if you are finding it too loud. I have also seen a mention somewhere that there may be a narrower nozzle that can be used, to reduce the noise level a little, though I have yet to find anyone specifically offering this.
Finally, here is an interesting article on the subject:
justaudiologystuff.com/if-y...
Thank you for this very useful information 😊I feel at this point in time I will leave well alone. I have got a large build up of wax in my right ear... I managed to spike this ear with a garden plant leaf it went right inside and since then I've had a loud hissing electric sound round my head... Sounds awful.My audiologist suggested I have the wax removed and it MAY calm the noise down.
Well I'm not taking any
chances at the moment, not brave enough. My setback with T has put me in a awful place. The accident happened Nov 1st.
How ever I do have quiet days which I love so I will keep on hoping a positive outcome will happen.
I've had T for 6 years and seemed to manage it after a long time.
I wouldn't have known about the wax if I hadn't had my accident.
Thank you for taking the time to reply to me.... I'm very grateful.
Such a horrible thing to have isn't it?
En
Enjoy your evening 🙂
I wish I had left things alone and plodded on with olive oil. I never realized the noise the suction would make, even though it was a short time. I don't know why specsavers are allowed to do it. I went into it blind. Good luck to you.
I had my ears suctioned a few ago as my tinnitus was horrendous, I am pleased to say it has helped to settle it down to what it was before.
Hi Maesy Don't do anything you're not 100% happy with & don't be swayed by health pros who don't understand tinnitus .
Hi I was aware of all the potential problems of associated tinnitus following micro suction when I needed wax removing from my ear . I found that the safest way seems to be a professional manually removing wax using a tool called a “Jobson horne”. I should stress this type of wax removal approach is almost totally silent and ONLY safe if it is done by someone who is very familiar with the procedure and is properly set up for it. By that I mean they have ear microscope equipment and the correct tools. Perhaps do some research into “earwax removal with instruments” and see what you think. If you can leave the wax alone then I would personally.
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