“Can a retracted eardrum heal itself after a tube is placed?”
I'm a 28yo female with a personal history of ear infections, environmental allergies, and sinus headaches. I had 3 tubes placed in my left eardrum between the ages of 8 and 11 in an attempt to help the chronic ear infections.
When I reached my 20s I had ear infections at least 3 times yearly. In 2019 I went to an ENT who ordered a CT scan. This resulted in sinus and septum surgery in March 2020. It was determined that my left side septum was almost 100% deviated and my sinus pockets were too small.
Following the procedure it was noted in my follow-ups that I wasn't healing very well. I've taken an antihistamine almost daily since I was 14 to treat allergy symptoms without knowing the cause, so I was referred to an immunologist and tested for allergies. I'm allergic to all the trees and grasses I was tested for, as well as dust and cats. I received allergy shots sometimes 3x weekly for a little over a year to great results. I moved from Utah to Washington and continued my allergy shots for another 4 months and had to stop due to injury.
I want to note that I haven't had an ear infection since the procedure in 2020.
In June 2022 I flew home from a vacation. After the flight I was unable to pop my left ear and sound was muffled like being underwater. A month later it felt full. August 2022 I went to an ENT who ordered an Audiogram which showed not insignificant hearing loss in certain ranges on the left side. His exam found my eardrum was retracted and there was a possibility of cholesteatoma that couldn't be verified without CT. The CT showed "bubbly" liquid in my sinuses and inner ear and obscured what he wanted to see. He prescribed Flonase and I was referred to another ENT. I started to experience dizziness and vertigo, pulsatile tinnitus, and headaches to the point it was unsafe for me to drive or walk alone. The second ENT diagnosed me with chronic sinusitis and ETD. He sucked pink goop out from my ear and placed a tube in the eardrum which quickly resolved the vertigo. I'm supposed to go back in a couple months, but I'm starting to get twitching in my eye, severe headaches, and returning pulsatile tinnitus.
Am I waiting for the eardrum to heal itself? Is that possible? Should I be less concerned about the ETD and possible cholesteatoma? I'm not sure what I'm waiting for or what to do next. I'm not confident that I'm being treated as a whole patient.
When I reached my 20s I had ear infections at least 3 times yearly. In 2019 I went to an ENT who ordered a CT scan. This resulted in sinus and septum surgery in March 2020. It was determined that my left side septum was almost 100% deviated and my sinus pockets were too small.
Following the procedure it was noted in my follow-ups that I wasn't healing very well. I've taken an antihistamine almost daily since I was 14 to treat allergy symptoms without knowing the cause, so I was referred to an immunologist and tested for allergies. I'm allergic to all the trees and grasses I was tested for, as well as dust and cats. I received allergy shots sometimes 3x weekly for a little over a year to great results. I moved from Utah to Washington and continued my allergy shots for another 4 months and had to stop due to injury.
I want to note that I haven't had an ear infection since the procedure in 2020.
In June 2022 I flew home from a vacation. After the flight I was unable to pop my left ear and sound was muffled like being underwater. A month later it felt full. August 2022 I went to an ENT who ordered an Audiogram which showed not insignificant hearing loss in certain ranges on the left side. His exam found my eardrum was retracted and there was a possibility of cholesteatoma that couldn't be verified without CT. The CT showed "bubbly" liquid in my sinuses and inner ear and obscured what he wanted to see. He prescribed Flonase and I was referred to another ENT. I started to experience dizziness and vertigo, pulsatile tinnitus, and headaches to the point it was unsafe for me to drive or walk alone. The second ENT diagnosed me with chronic sinusitis and ETD. He sucked pink goop out from my ear and placed a tube in the eardrum which quickly resolved the vertigo. I'm supposed to go back in a couple months, but I'm starting to get twitching in my eye, severe headaches, and returning pulsatile tinnitus.
Am I waiting for the eardrum to heal itself? Is that possible? Should I be less concerned about the ETD and possible cholesteatoma? I'm not sure what I'm waiting for or what to do next. I'm not confident that I'm being treated as a whole patient.
Female | 28 years old
Complaint duration: 20 years
Medications: Flonase, antihistamine
Conditions: Chronic sinusitis, eustachian tube dysfunction, allergies,
1 Answer
The tube placement was to treat the ETD and drain off the liquid. Likely a second CT will be ordered to image the possible cholesteatoma. Since you have questions and concerns about your ENT's course of treatment, I would recommend you schedule some time to speak to him now, either by phone, Zoom, or in person, so your questions can be answered and you will have a better understanding of what his plan is in a couple of months and to report the return of some of your symptoms. More information is always better.
