W-E-I-R-D symptoms

[lordbritish]

My symptoms:

1. Low-pitched roaring/humming sound, like the sound you get in your ears when you yawn deeply. Sometimes this is accompanied by a higher-pitched ringing, although it's not generally that loud and doesn't last that long. The roaring/humming is constant, at least when I have symptoms.
2. No vertigo. No dizziness.
3. Seems like I have some hearing loss in right ear. Fullness comes and goes.
4. Eyelid fluttering from time to time.
5. Sore right jaw. It clicks when I open it wide and then close.
6. Is it called hyperacusis when sounds make the roaring in one's ear louder? Perhaps it's just an offshoot of the tinnitus.
7. Symptoms are generally worst first thing in the morning, when I get out of bed, and calm slightly throughout the day, to the point where, come evening, I think it might finally be subsiding. Then I go to bed and, when I get up the next morning, the roaring and sensitivity is back in full vigour.

I had similar symptoms in the winter of 2001/02, and remember having it several times through the years, including in the summer of 2010. Have had symptoms three separate times since Labour Day, with breaks in between:

Aug 28, 2013, to Sep 8, 2013 (12 days)
Oct 13, 2013, to Oct 23, 2013 (11 days)
Nov 5, 2013, to Ongoing (November 14)

The internet of course is full of horror stories about tumours and such. I do wish to get some idea of what the possibilities of my actually having a brain tumour are. I read somewhere that it affects 1 in 100,000 people, which here in Canada would mean I'm one of 350 people who will be diagnosed with acoustic neuroma this year. Seems a little far-fetched. But perhaps someone out there would have a better idea? Do my symptoms ring a bell for anyone? I'd very much like to know. I feel perfectly fine other than these very, very irritating symptoms. Really getting sick of plastering on a smile when I feel like yelling.

Thanks in advance for commenting.

Lord British

Possibilities:

Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction
Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
Sinusitis and/or Allergies
Bacterial or Viral Infection
Acoustic Neuroma

[Gloria Nailor]

Sorry to hear you aren't feeling the best and seem a bit frustrated.  Some people can have tinnitus that is unrelated to any tumor or other illness.  I did have a small jumpy feeling near my eye at times, like a mild tic, but it wasn't very often, it may not even have been related to my tumor.  TMJ did pop into my mind when you mentioned the jaw clicking.  But....I am not a doctor, you need to find a physician you trust and tell them your concerns then ask for an MRI with contrast.  Good luck to you....

[Echo]

I'm one of your fellow Canadians who does have an Acoustic Neuroma. 

In the spring of 2011 I had a bad sinus infection along with very mild tinnitus.  I noticed a sight loss of hearing in my right ear when on the phone.  The sinus infection cleared and I continued to live with the tinnitus. Spring 2012 and I have another sinus infection where I again noticed the loss of hearing in my right ear.  When this sinus infection cleared I paid more attention to the hearing loss and went to see an ENT.  He sent me for a CT Scan and an MRI.  The CT Scan came back fine.  A 1.8cm Acoustic neuroma was found on the MRI.  I had no other symptoms than tinnitus and hearing loss.   During the first year after diagnosis, as the AN continued to grow I developed balance issues and occasionally experienced a tingling sensation on my right jaw and cheek after sneezing and numbness that would come and go from the corner of my mouth.
Spring 2013 and my follow up MRI showed my AN had grown to 2.4cm. 

The internet is a great resource, but if you have ongoing symptoms that are a concern and hearing loss is one of them, I would suggest going to an ENT.  Fill him/her in on your issues and request an MRI.  Better to follow through and let a specialist check you out. 

Best of luck.
Cathie.