Connect
Q-Tip, Eardrum, Fx & Dislocated Ossicles, Vertigo, Imbalance
On 12/24 I perforated my eardrum with a q-tip and fractured the incus in half, dislocated the distal portion of incus which was still attached to the stapes and stapes footplate was pushed into the vestibule. (Hearing bones) Immediate vertigo and imbalance. Fell to the ground from immediate loss of balance. Immediate tinnitus, vertigo & imbalance which lasted 9 days. On January 2, 2024 I had surgery to repair above injury. The Stapes footplate was pulled out of the vestibule and oval window, a graft from the tragus was placed over the oval window to prevent perilymph fluid leaking, incus was rotated back up to place to place of fracture and was wrapped with a graft, graft was placed over the tympanic membrane (eardrum). Woke up in recovery with severe vertigo and imbalance. Any head movement or body movement caused severe vertigo. I also had to be admitted to the hospital for 2 nights because of post op nausea & vomiting x12 hours. I am now just over 4 weeks post op and I am still having vertigo with head movements, which has improved, imbalance with walking, hearing loss and tinnitus. I had pulsatile tinnitus for about a week. Now the tinnitus is constant ringing. My hearing is so sensitive as well. Especially to fans, cupboard doors closing, tires on the roadway, eating a potato chip. I haven’t driven a car or been able to return to my job as a nurse, because of the persistent vertigo and imbalance. On January 19th, my ENT Surgeon ordered Vestibular Therapy and said he would see me back in 1 month. On January 25, 2024 I saw a Neurotologist for a second opinion. He ordered a CT scan. I am currently waiting to get a CT of the IAC to rule out a subluxation of the stapes footplate and a perilymph fistula (inner ear fluid leak). I was using a walker to get around our house for a couple of weeks because I was so unsteady. My imbalance in the home is better, but I can tell you where every unlevel surface in the floor is. I haven’t been in public except for doctors apts as walking on unlevel surfaces causes more imbalance and I fear I am going to fall. I’m only 53 and healthy prior to this with no physical limitations. Has anyone heard of such an injury or had an injury involving the ossicles (hearing bones) with lasting vertigo and imbalance. I have searched the internet high and low and have only been able to find a handful of cases of this nature. I also had moderate conductive hearing loss prior to surgery and now I have moderate to severe mixed hearing loss. (Conductive plus sensorinural) I started vestibular therapy on 1/29 to help retrain my brain. I’m not sure what the next step will be if the CT scan is negative. I live in a rural area so specialist are limited and a couple of hours away. I can live with the tinnitus and hearing loss but not a lifetime of vertigo with head movement and imbalance. My brain feels like is swooshing around in there when I’m walking or moving it. I’m hopeful vestibular therapy helps. Who knew a tiny little Q-tip could cause such a debilitating injury. Just trying to find the right doctor or find a case similar to mine seems almost impossible. Thank you in advance for any advice.
Like
Helpful
HugInterested in more discussions like this? Go to the Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Support Group.
Connect
tmragain, I have never heard of anything like this. This must be awful. I think you are on the right path with a neurologist. Praying for you right now to get better. I have had bouts of vertigo which is nothing compared to what you are going through.....they were no fun. Antivert/Meclizine was what I was given and it worked for me. I had a dear friend who battled vertigo for quite a while and she had to go on valium until it went away and it did. I know yours is worse and I am so sorry. God Bless You.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionThank you! 😊
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionI'm so sorry to hear this story. Vertigo is horrible regardless of its cause. There is an old saying that everyone should abide by. "Never put anything in your ear smaller than your own elbow."
Cleaning one's ears out with a cue tip, hairpin or other device is risky. More so for some people than others due to the differences in individual ear canals.
Hoping the neurologist's treatment will work for you.
As a long time sufferer of ear disease, I can sympathize with your issue. As said above, you should never put anything in your ear, but that does not help you now 🙂 I had an extensive surgery to rebuild my entire ear ( new drum, titanium hearing bones) due to years of ear infections and a cyst. The recovery is long but thankfully, I never had much vertigo with it. I do have hearing loss, but surprisingly it's only 30%. You mentioned you are in a rural area, but you may need to see a Neurotologist, they have more extensive training than an ENT. This probably doesn't help you much, but I wish you luck.
I did not post on this site to be criticized or lectured for putting a qtip in my ear. I posted in hopes of finding answers to my prolonged symptoms or finding others that may have experienced a freak incident as I did. If you do not have any helpful advice, please refrain from commenting on this post. Thank you.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionThank you for sharing your experience. I am finding out the recovery process is a lot longer than I anticipated. I have already seen a Neurotologist for a second opinion, but thank you for the suggestion. He ordered a CT scan which I am getting tomorrow. Luckily the CT scanner that have is 1 of 7 in the nation and has the ability to do .2mm slicing with photon counting. Having this ability gives them the advantage of seeing more detail than your standard CT scanner. If the CT scan is normal, I will need to continue with Vestibular Therapy.
Understandable, but that was such an extreme result of putting a q tip in your ear its worth mentioning so that other people reading this might learn from it. My husband uses Q-tips and I read your comment to him. He will never do it again. So, you helped someone.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 ReactionsI’m glad this may help prevent such an injury to someone else. 😊
tmragain, God bless you. I know that people mean well. Sometimes they say things before they think. I apologize on behalf of whomever it was that criticized or lectured you. I have used qtips all my life and I thank you for posting this. I think you helped some people to be honest out of the goodness of your heart. I am still praying for you to get better. This has got to be so miserable and discouraging.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionThank you for your kindness and prayers! They are greatly appreciated 🤗