Archive for the ‘Ears’ Category

Ringing Ears – A disorder or a side effect of medications

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009

I’ve noticed lately that I’ve developed ringing in my ears. Could this be a side effect of one of my medications?
1. You have not listed the medicines that you are taking.
2. The condition that you are suffering from is Tinnitus, which can be due to a number of causes like hypertension; diabetes, pain killers like aspirin, ibuprofen, antibiotics especially amino glycosides like gentamycin, amikacin, etc, and antimalarial medications; local ear infections like otitis media.
3. To identify the cause you need to consult an ENT doctor. Get a thorough examination of not only your ears, nose and throat but also test for diabetes and High Blood Pressure. And a hearing test that includes an impedance audiogram to record the pressure of your middle ear.
Turning Yellow

I am a 26-year-old man working in the public sector. My teeth have been yellow in color since childhood. I have tried different toothpastes to no avail. Kindly suggest a way by which I can get a whiter set of 32.
Yellow or stained teeth from childhood are usually the result of using over chlorinated water or taking antibiotics like tetracycline in the early years. Regular toothpastes will not lighten your teeth, and the effect of whitening toothpastes is barely perceptible even on coffee stains. Get a professional whitening treatment at a dentist’s, which will last longer and offer better results.

My voice is heavy and not very clear. So whenever I speak with my friends, they can’t understand me and when I want to speak very quickly, my voice cracks up and my friends make fun on me. Please tell me what I have to do so that my voice becomes light and I can speak like a normal student and quickly?
You seem to be having multiple problems, if your voice is heavy, you need to be seen by a voice consultant who will do a voice analysis and get to the root of the problem. You also mention that your words are not clear to others, which indicates a pronunciation or diction problem, which can be treated only in consultation with a speech therapist. But don’t worry. Both these problems are curable.

Relief from Hear Ache

Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008

My mother has developed a very serious problem of reduced hearing in her left ear. And perhaps due to the absence of external noises, she has started hearing internal ones. The source of the noise is in the left ear and left side of the brain and it is so loud, that she finds it unbearable. It has been 3 years since her menopause. She has no other health conditions other than mild high blood pressure. This problem is a recent development and all the allopathy doctors including an ENT specialist we consulted say that there is no treatment.
It appears your mother is suffering from “Tinnitus” or “head noise” as it is called. The causes of this are many, and to identify them several tests may be needed. These include
(1) Hemoglobin, CBC, Fasting Blood sugar, BUN, Serum Creatinine and thyoid function
(2) Pure tone audiogram with speech audiometry.
(3) Impedance audiometry
(4) Brainstem evoked response audiometry
(5) MR I of the head and brain,
The results of these should be evaluated by a competent ENT surgeon who will also give your mother a thorough physical examination. Her blood pressure should be evaluated properly, as high BP is implicated in this condition. She may need to lose weight, exercise, and go on a special diet to control the hypertension. Should no obvious cause be found then she may be given medications like
(1) Tablet Bilovas(German Remedies) three times a day for a minimum of three months.
(2) Capsule Vitamin B complex with Zinc in it to be taken twice a day for three months,
(3) Capsule Vitamin E(200mg) twice a day for three months.
(4) An antidepressant may be prescribed by your family doctor if it’s affecting her moods severely.
She should also avoid painkillers, certain antibiotics belonging to the aminoglycoside family, and steer clear of loud sounds. Quite often people do respond favorably to treatment and the noise(tinnitus) subsides. The good news is that since the problem is a recent one she should experience relief.