I was diagnosed with Ménière's last summer after a sneeze blew up my left ear. Does anybody else have pulsatile tinnitus 24/7? I have had it non-stop for about a year. I'm also recently having weekly rotational vertigo episodes where it feels like my head is going to come off my body when I turn it to the left. It's worrying me because my Ménière's symptoms seem to be improving(not having a lot of brain fog, not too much aural fullness, tinnitus getting quieter), but my vertigo episodes are increasing. I'm worried that this is more than just Ménière's. I'm mostly worried about the non-stop pulsing in my left ear and I wonder if this is a common symptom. My oto is great, but he shrugged off my question about pulsatile tinnitus. I've had the MRI and there's no tumor. Any feedback is appreciated.
Are you saying you can hear your pulse (swish swish) as your heart pushes the blood through your ear? If so, I never had that until a couple of weeks ago. I was thinking of it as a good thing. I don't have it every day. Sometimes, it's like the high pitched tinnitus I have, I don't notice it unless I am in a quiet space.
I am curiuos about what exactly you mean by pulsatile tinnitus. My ringing is at an all time high. I also get roaring, clicking and shooting pains in my affected ear. Some days easier to deal with than others.
I can hear my pulse in my ear. It's a whoosh whoosh sound that does seem to go along with my heartbeat. It has become quieter over the last few months, but I used to be able to feel my head move along with the whoosh. As it has become quieter, my vertigo has ramped up a little. I get lots of clicking when I swallow, as though there is something obstructing the tube that goes down to my throat, and honestly every time I burp my Ménière's ear screeches. It's all very annoying.
Cjbeau, I also have pulsatile tinnitus. I had a VNS in my left ear about 20 years ago. Following the surgery I had pulsatile tinnitus in that ear constantly for a couple of years. One day it just stopped and I've never had it again in that ear. About six years ago the Meniere's became bilateral. In the last couple of years I've had pulsatile tinnitus in the right ear off and on. It can last for a day or it can last for a month. It comes and goes with no rhyme or reason. Sometimes it's a whoosh, sometimes a boom boom and other times ping ping, all in time with my heartbeat. It is way worse, meaning more annoying, than any other tinnitus I've ever had and I think I've heard about every noise there is. Sometimes I can stop it momentarily by pressing on the spot behind the earlobe, just under the mastoid bone. Sometimes I hold my finger there when I'm trying to get to sleep. When I burp, my non VNS ear pings. Annoying, to say the least. You mention you get vertigo when turning your head to the left. Does the vertigo last very long? Have you considered that it could be positional vertigo?
Ok I get it..I think I've had that sensation from extreme exercise before the MM but not since. One down...
I do think some of my vertigo is positional. I just had a mini episode tonight. It lasted for an hour or less- no nausea, no loud ringing, no hearing loss, no exhaustion afterwards. I wasn't even dizzy when I closed my eyes. Just doesn't seem like a regular Ménière's episode.
Sounds to me like BPPV. I have that as well as MM and MAV but there is a big difference in how the dizziness shows up and reconciles. They are all treated quite differenty medically.
I also have pulsatile tinnitus. It started at least a year ago. My otoneurologist didn't seem concerned when I told him. At first I feared that I might have a tumor, but now I just deal with the pulsing along with all the other noise in my ears.
I have it too, for several years since the Meniere's first struck. It ranges from loud to barely perceptible, but it is always present. I have noticed that when I feel better otherwise, it is more pronounced. I have come to believe this may be due to increased blood flow to my MM ear, because if I feel better otherwise, I eat better, I exercise more consistently, and I sleep better. Kind of a catch-22, I guess. If I don't feel good, all my better habits go out the window and I end up feeling even worse. My OTO offers no real help or insight on this, only that if it gets worse, we should do some more tests.
Yes, it developed about a year after my initial vertigo episode. Whoosh, whoosh is a good description--sometimes it gets louder. Behind or underneath that sound is the ongoing and constant high-pitched ringing. I also have clicks, roaring, etc.
I have pulsatile tinnitus sometimes. I find it much preferable to the constant kind. It's hard to believe it is not related to the MM because it seems to come right along with it, so I'm a bit shocked by Philosopher's post. I will have to consider that. I also get a beep when I burp! Great to know I'm not alone there. Such a strange thing. I think your vertigo sounds like it could be BPPV, too, which is great news because, if so, it can be solved with something called the Epley Maneuver. You might start by getting a referral to a physical therapist. I've had vertigo from MAV and BPPV (and I think a bit from MM too). But that Epley Maneuver resolved the stuff that seemed related to turning my head and that was great. I have an at-home version I can do when it starts to come back.
I also get the pulsating tinnitus. it first started right after my shunt surgery. I always assumed the doctor moved a vein to make room for the shunt. I just learned to live with it like the other low tone constant 24/7 tinnitis I get. I also get a high pitch one that comes and go. That one is the hardest todeal with for me. The heart beat one is the easiest and some times I focus on that one when trying to sleep.