Hyperbaric therapy restores hearing TL;DR - if you have sudden hearing loss, the sudden deafening tinnitus or anything that might be Meniere's - intratympanic dexamethasone, NAC and HBOT might save you if you can get to it quick enough. The lady in the article's symptoms and onset were identical to mine. I only wish I had had access to Mayo Clinic when it happened to me rather than the nightmarish physicians at Ohio State. (I lost 90% of the hearing in my right ear thanks to 'the experts' at OSU.) Quick bg on me - MD diagnosis 2017. For 3 years prior to my first attack I had distortion in my MD ear when using a phone or earbuds, but otherwise my hearing was great. I had no idea what it was and my ENT didn't either (I used to joke that it sounded like I had an alien implant that didn't like cellphones or earbuds.) Then I had a legit attack and it was all downhill from there. I made the grave error of going to Ohio State for help. In hindsight I should have gone immediately to the Cleveland Clinic but at the time I was confused, terrified and couldn't think straight because it sounded like an F14 was trying to launch out of my right ear. Since then I've tried nearly everything including vitamins, chiropractors, IT prednisone etc with no success. I was even so desperate I tried the Stephen Spring protocol which consisted of spending a gazillion dollars on a million blood tests, X-rays, CBCT scans, MRIs as well as paying Stephen handsomely to ultimately tell me I might try lowering my cholesterol - and then he ghosted me. What I did discover in the process was that other than spontaneously going deaf in one ear I was the picture of health. I was left with 90% hearing loss and constant variable tinnitus. The only thing I've ever done that actually worked was was the Epley maneuver which I did at home by myself against the advice of my Ohio Snake University doctor. It was way too late for me by the time I found the above article about HBOT but coincidentally we happened to have a low atmosphere hyperbaric chamber at home (1.3ATA). We've been using it to treat my mom who has frontotemporal dementia. I figured it couldn't hurt so I started myself on a regimen of NAC and daily 1-2 hour sessions with HBOT. ( I would try higher a higher pressure chamber but my understanding is prolonged use of anything over 1.5ATA will permanently effect your vision. I have enough problems already!). I haven't had any vertigo for 3-4 years since I found the Epley maneuver so that isn't a metric I can speak to. I also haven't had any success reversing my condition with hyperbaric therapy - BUT - when I am in the chamber at pressure I can actually hear things in my right ear. It's at low volume but it's clear and pitch perfect. I also notice the tinnitus drops to nearly nothing and the feeling of fullness is gone. Nothing miraculous but it was curious. Last week I had what I feared was a Meniere's attack in my good ear (no tinnitus but I suddenly lost about 50% of my hearing all in the lower frequencies and everything sounded tinny). It was Saturday of course because medical issues only seem to happen to me on weekends or holidays. The only thing I had available was the hyperbaric chamber. An hour inside that thing my hearing was right back to normal. Could have been a coincidence but the problem reversed itself about as fast as it came on once I was "in the bag". I don't know if anyone else has experience with this stuff but I'm dying to know why a mild hyperbaric chamber has a temporary positive effect on my condition. I'm apprehensive about getting in one over 2.2ATA at 100% oxygen but if anyone else has done it I'd love to hear about it.
??? If your issue is Meniere's disease, the Epley maneuver should be useless. That maneuver is designed to settled loose bone chimes in the vestibule
This is good to see. If it helped for hearing it may be able to help with my dizziness. Plus the article is an excuse to get an ENT to prescribe hyperbaric for me
I did 28 sessions of HBOT within 3 weeks of my sudden hearing loss. It didn’t seem to help, at least it didn’t improve things. What would you like to know?
Did they give you IT or oral prednisone or dexamethasone? What ATA chamber? How long were the sessions? Did they give you supplemental oxygen through a cannula or 100% inside the chamber? Does the addition of a second daily session of hyperbaric oxygen therapy to intratympanic steroid influence the outcomes of sudden hearing loss? Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Primary Care Update As I was getting a prescription for steroids for sudden hearing loss from one of the worthless, arrogant doctors at Ohio State, he prescribed Prednisone. I tried to explain to him that Dexamethasone was a better option. He told me they were exactly the same. Some doctors refuse to read or listen. "Comparison of prednisone and dexamethasone shows that dexamethasone has a higher biological half-life and greater anti-inflammatory properties than prednisone at drug-equivalent doses"
I had 4 IT injections of dexamethasone prior to starting HBOT. I don't remember the exact details and timing, but I started with short 45 minute sessions and worked my way up to double the time and increased pressure (topping out at 2.8). Once I reached 90 minutes there was an air break at the midpoint to avoid oxygen toxicity (I forget the exact term) I actually have a supply of prednisone that I use from time to time (seems to be every 6 months or so during seasonal changes) when my hearing drops.