Cochlea Hydrops

Posted , 7 users are following.

Hi, I am new to the forum.  I have been diagnosed with Cochlea Hydrops, which my consultant tells me is a form of Meniere's disease, just without the vertigo.  My main symptom is ear fullness (which can be painful at times) and distorted hearing  I am just wondering if anyone else has had this particular version and what treatment they had.  How successful was it?  Many thanks. 

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  • Posted

    Hi Daniel,

    Welcome to the forum.  I'm so sorry to hear that you've got a form of Meniere's Disease.  I have classic MD, so my symptoms have included ear fullness, hearing loss, tinnitus, and rotational vertigo.  The treatment that works for me is intratympanic injections with dexamethasone.  However, I'm guessing that if you wait a while, you'll find someone else in the group who has Cochlear Hydrops.  We seem to run the gamut, here!  It's an interesting group, with lots of experience and good tips for anyone who has been newly diagnosed.

    Did your doctor discuss treatments?  

    Again, welcome.  I hope you find relief for your symptoms, soon!

    Take good care,

    J-

     

    • Posted

      Hi J,

      Many thanks for your reply, and for your kind words.

      I started with taking betahistine (16mg) 3 times a day and a dieuretic, but didn't really help that much.  Then another consultant has given me 4 steroid injections which did seem to provide some mild relief but recently the fullness seems to have become worse again.  I do suffer from hypersensitivity of the ears which probably compounds the problem from time to time.  I am considering going back for a 5th injection.  I was just wondering if anyone else had any other treatments.

      Take care yourself!

       

  • Posted

    Hi Daniel,

    ​if i may ask, is it in both ears or just one? What does your audiogram look like?

    • Posted

      Hi SD,

      Thanks for your interest.  Its just one ear.  My audiogram wasn't too bad.  I have only lost a small percentage of hearing in the bad ear compared to the other.  My main symptom is seems to be the ear fullness and occasional tinnitus

    • Posted

      Hey Daniel. My symptoms started out like yours but recently got worse. I had to go on the low salt diet and I’m taking betahistine daily for the pressure. I occasionally use a deuretic when I travel to Asia. I’m almost certain this is not food related. The pressure is key though. When I feel better reassure coming I know I going to loose my hearing. 
    • Posted

      Hi David.  Unfortunately, for me both the betahistine and deuretic didn't work.  I have heard from different consultants and read that there are conflicting views on how good they really are, I am not so sure, but I guess individuals react differently.   Drinking lots of water and not trying to feel too anxious about the problem sometimes alleviates the symptoms, but with the anxiety, I know that this is sometimes easier said than done.  Do you have any tinnitus or hypercusis (sensitvity to sound)?     

  • Posted

    Hi Daniel,

    Yes, when my hearing goes the sensitivity (hyperacussis) is bad, so I’m forced to use earplugs. And yes, I had high frequency hearing loss in the same ear from when I was a teen; when I started developing hydrops symptoms 10 years ago, the tinnitus got worse. It went away, and now it’s back 10 years to the date. It seems like things were in remission. I’m seeing a specialist regularly. I deal with hearing loss and try to mange my episodes using ear plugs and the betahistine and deuretic. What other advice has you received? What other treatments are you contemplating, the low salt diet is not a big deal as we should all be following it anyway. Still, I’m not so sure that has anything to do with it. Again, something causes the pressure to build in my ears. I’ve read viral drugs may be able to reduce and help with both the pressure and hearing loss.

    • Posted

      Hi David, I have had several steroid injections into my middle ear, proposed by my consultant.  Apparently, this works on some patients.  I had this recently done so I am waiting to see if it is successful, but it wasn't an instant success.  I also suffer from hyperacussis on my right ear which I am finding difficult to handle.  Have you ever been to an audiologist and tried noise generators to try and tackle this?  Was this successful? 

    • Posted

      Daniel, I’ve chosen to follow a less invasive approach through diet first and betahistine. I’ve had one or two episodes of slight vertigo, but nothing severe thankfully. I’ve eliminated caffeine, no alcohol, and stay under 2000mg of sodium per day (~400-500mg) per meal. When I have an episode, I wear the ear plugs to eliminate the effects from hyperaccusis. I’ve learned to control my tinnitus using a hearing aid with a noise generator. 
    • Posted

      And yes, I’ve seen the audiologist. In fact, I’m due for a follow up with the ENT sometime in February. I guess you have a more aggressive ENT because when my hearing was first affected I took prednisone. To this day, I don’t believe this had anything to do with restoring my hearing, but al other options required surgery of some sort. 
  • Posted

    Hi. I was diagnosed with cochlear hydrops in May this year. Started with distorted hearing and intense fullness 12 months prior. Just recently my symptoms got worse and I now have a mild to moderate LF fluctuating hearing loss and tinnitus in this ear. No vertigo. I'm so frustrated and the specialists I've seen have said there is nothing more they can do. I'm trying to work out what triggers it as some days I feel great and my hearing is really stable and then the next three days are a complete train wreck! If I find something that works I'll let you know.

    • Posted

      Hi.  Have you tried cutting out caffeine and excess salt?  It might make a difference.  
    • Posted

      I would start with diet. Simple foods for a couple of weeks like rice, potatoes, salads, and fruit. Eliminate caffeine and alcohol. Then you can start introducing other foods. As may have mentioned on this forum, MD comes in many forms. I would also try a deuretic. It sounds like you need to change ENTs and find one that specializes in MD.
  • Posted

    Yes my diet I've changed drastically - no change to my ear issues. I just saw a new ENT who has just done a steroid injection into my ear. Initially the tinnitus was quiet but now 4 days later it's back and my hearing is fluctuating again. UGH I just can't deal with this mess!

    • Posted

      Yohiggo,

      Don’t give up hope.  For me, it took quite a few steroid injections before my tinnitus backed down permanently and my hearing actually improved (it has been several months now, and my hearing has remained stable!) There seems to be a cumulative effect, with those injections.  

      I wish you the best of luck!

      J-

    • Posted

      That's great! Hopefully I get a similar outcome.

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