I was on a plane a week ago at cruising altitude. I heard 5-8 loud pops in my right ear, followed by intense vertigo for about 10 minutes... the plane was spinning at what felt like 1000 rotations per second, couldn't focus. I was drenched in sweat in minutes, nausea, etc, etc. It felt like total hearing loss in my right ear. Thought I was dying or a stroke or something else. I muscled through the next 1.5 hours of the flight and could barely walk getting off the plane. I went to the ER when I landed and to an ENT the next morning who said I might have a round window or oval window fistula, caused by barotrauma. He put me on steroids for 10 days (I am 8 days in). My hearing is back to about 60%, tinnitus is high pitched (not low) and 5-8 on scale of 10. Dizziness has slowly improved, and I felt about 70% normal this morning, but later today I hit a bad patch of brain fog/dizziness for about 3 hours. In retrospect, I have had other symptoms previously that seem consistent with Meniere's... pressure/fullness in affected ear previously (flying, driving above 8000 feet, weather etc), migraines/headaches, occasional tinnitus in that ear, occasional spots in vision prior to migraine. I have never experienced any dizziness or vertigo previously though. Questions: - Would Meniere's cause smaller bouts of dizziness prior to this very intense initial episode? - Has anyone else experienced loud pops before the vertigo? Do the pops occur in subsequent episodes? - Could the popping sound be the rupture of the Reissner/Vestibular membrane? Are there any reports stating you can hear the tear? - Are there other symptoms that would point to a Meniere's diagnosis that I should discuss with my doctor? This is all new to me, so I greatly appreciate your help
DB, Sorry to hear about the airplane fiasco. Many of us have had the incredible vertigo attacks but to have it on a fairly long flight must have been brutal. As for your questions, you will probably get a full spectrum of answers since MM seems to treat everyone just a little differently. From my experience: My intense vertigo attacks were not preceded by smaller bouts of dizziness. I would usually get a warning with the increased tinnitus but that was about it. In 28 years living with this and hundreds of attacks, I've only experienced the loud pops a few times and usually on a plane. Don't know about the rupture of the Reissner membrane. I'm sure you know already, but "classic" menieres is: Vertigo, fullnes, tinnitus, and hearing loss. For my first 22 years I had all these symptoms intermittently and then for 5 years the severe vertigo diminished to non-existent but it was replaced with frequent disequilibrium. The hearing loss and tinnitus were always there. I'm happy to report that for the past year I am symptom free with the exception of tinnitus. I attribute this to Antivirals which seem to work for some but not for others. Bottom line is start a journal and document everything that happens to you. Always look for triggers. Get a good, open-minded ENT/Otolaryngologist to help you but recognize that this disease can be unique and there is no one better to manage it then you. Best of luck and best of health to you.
teesdale, thank you. Can you explain the thought process behind the antivirals? Plane flights are an issue for me as I fly almost weekly - my ENT said putting a tube in that ear might help stabilize pressure during flight.. any experience with tubes and menieres? To your point, it seems like the symptoms and how to solve are highly individualized. I will start using a journal based on your recommendation. Great input... thanks again.
DB, You may want to search the John of Ohio (JOH) vitamin regimen on this site. John developed this regimen to both combat the herpes virus and increase fluid flow after he became convinced that for many of us the disease is a virus. His data collected over the past two decades I believe still indicates an 86% success rate on the regimen. I once messaged him on why he was convinced of the herpes virus as the cause for many of us. He relayed a story that after a year or so on the regimen and living virtually symptom free, he suddenly began experiencing the beast. When he re-traced his steps he found that he had recently added L-Arginine into his daily vitamin routine. He researched L-Arginine and found it was a herpes instigator. He ceased taking the arginine and quickly became symptom free again. He was convinced after that. I have no experience with tubes but others on this site probably have.
DizzyBuff, there are a variety of conditions that present with Meniere's-like symptoms. The first thing is to work with a vertigo-specialist doctor and figure out the specific diagnosis. It could be a fistula or a migraine associated vertigo, meniere's, or something else. Each of these has a different treatment, so you want to be sure to first figure out what it is. Find a doctor who specializes in vertigo or meniere's; an ENT inexperienced in these conditions may not understand what you are going through and what you need, but should be able to refer you to the right specialist if you ask. To answer your questions based on my personal experience: Meniere's episodes can come with precursors of heightened non-vertigo symptoms (dizziness, loud tinnitus, more pressure in the ears, fluctuating hearing loss), or they can also come completely out of the blue when you least expect them. Why would I be suddenly hit when walking in a Home Depot store, such that I had to drop to the floor and sit immobile for an hour? As a child, at times I heard strange loud pops that made me cringe, and surprised me that no one else heard. I never talked with anyone about it, but wonder now whether it might have been an early precursor to meniere's. I haven't had many of those pops as an adult. I have no idea about the origin or cause of those pops, but they are indeed alarming. The symptoms that define Meniere's are vertigo, hearing loss (particularly in the lower registers), tinnitus, and aural fullness. All four are required for a conclusive Meniere's diagnosis. Other conditions have some but not all of these symptoms -- migraines, tumors, BPPV, etc. Some of those are treatable and some are urgent. You need to get an MRI to rule out some diagnoses. It's so important to get with a reputable doctor who understands Meniere's in order to get the right treatment. If you make a post here with your area of residence and a request of recommended doctors, you might find some proven specialists. Good wishes to you. We're here when you need us.
Dizzy Buff, So sorry about your recent flying experience. I too flew recently but did ok; only symptoms were unstaedy gait getting off one plane, brain fog and increased hearing loss in my left ear. I've been on an anti viral for about a year and a half and have not experienced vertigo like I had before treatment. I've also learned to lie/sit immediately upon spinning. I have xanax as needed ordered and took one before flying. I have no experience with loud popping before vertigo. I do have many years experience with almost daily headaches and rarely migraine headaches. I have had several neck injuries thru the years. So far I've read that these are not symptoms of Meniere's but I have read here that others have headaches, problems with their, neck, jaw and dental infections. I have seen an excellent massage therapist which helps greatly with headaches. I've read that those of us with Meniere's need to avoid stress. Massage, counseling, prayer and mediTation helps me with this. I'm someone who has always been tense from the time I wake in the morning but don't want to become addicted to medicines like xanax. Because you said that you could barely walk getting off the flight, I'll share my experience of falling twice. Luckily only minor injuries resulted in my case. My best to everyone.