Retro Sigmoid or Middle Fossa

[leapyrtwins]

Mei Mei -

congratulations on the new grandbaby 

It sounds to me like your surgeon has plenty of experience.

I had the retrosigmoid approach and everything turned out well for me.  My only lasting issue is SSD and I got a BAHA implant that has helped immensely with that.

The plate in your head will be very small - my neurosurgeon described the hole in my head as a "window" and basically made a little box with his fingers by touching the tip of his index finger to the tip of his thumb.  I have titanium mesh, titanium screws, a titanium plate, and belly fat in my head from my AN surgery - plus a titanium abutment and rod from my BAHA surgery and I can feel none of them.  No one realizes they are there either.  Don't stress.

Jan

[Mei Mei]

Dear Clarice and Jan,
Thanks for your replies.   I guess he's had 400+ AN surgeries total but I'm not sure if he said in a year or not.  I'm also not sure if he said plate or mesh now.   Now I'm really confused.  He did say Titanium and that I would set off an alarm at the airport.  I should have taken notes or brought a tape recorder.  Well now I'm less stressed at least now that I've received your post that you have Titanium in your head and don't feel it.  It's comforting to hear from you.

Sincerely,
Mei Mei

[leapyrtwins]

He did say Titanium and that I would set off an alarm at the airport. 

Mei Mei -

titanium will NOT set off the alarms @ the airport.  I know this for a fact - I've traveled by airplane (via O'Hare Airport) numerous times since my AN and my BAHA surgeries and I've never "beeped".  I have lots of titanium in my head.

Jan

[Mei Mei]

Dear Jan,
Well, that's good to know.  I wonder why the doctor told me that?  Now I'm really curious.  I guess I'll be emailing you a lot after the surgery about the BAHA and your new hearing aid should I lose my hearing in the surgery.   I now have a 35dB loss and want to hold it at that.

Talk with you later guys!!
Sincerely,
Mei Mei

[texsooner]

I also have titanium in the noggin' and have traveled through numerous airports post retrosigmoid surgery and never have set off any detector. My doctor did give me a letter just in case, but I haven't needed it.

Patrick

[Mei Mei]

Hi Patrick,
Sounds like you are all proving my doc wrong about the bells and whistles at the airport. 

About the SSD and tinnitus I noticed in your signature.  May I ask how you can hear it if you are deaf in that ear;  then you can still hear at least the annoying tinnitus which I can hear.  Are you totally deaf on that side?

Sincerely,
Mei Mei

[texsooner]

Mei Mei,

Good question...I had the same question for my doctors. Yes, I am totally deaf on the AN side (confirmed by my audiologist) as the hearing nerve was too involved with the tumor when it was removed. The only thing I hear is the tinnitus on the AN side.

My neurotologist explained that sometimes the brain (in absence of receiving normal sounds to transmit) will make up its own noise in the form of tinnitus. I was hoping that with the hearing nerve being totally shot, the tinnitus would go away, but in my case it actually got a little stronger after surgery. However, I can block it out most of the time and it doesn't usually bother me or affect my family or work life. The tinnitus does tend to get louder in noisy environments, at least for me.

Patrick

[Mei Mei]

Thanks, Patrick,
I appreciate your clarity as with every question I have more question.  It really is hard to live with and I was hoping it would go away with the deafness.  Thank you for the explanation.
Sincerely,
Mei Mei

[texsooner]

Mei Mei,

For me, it has not been hard to live with. Like I mentioned earlier, the only time it annoys me some is in noisy environments like loud restaurants. 

Patrick

[Mei Mei]

Dear Patrick,
This is comforting...I'm hoping to hang on to most of my hearing .   The countdown to Jan 12th is getting closer and closer.
Sincerely,
Mei Mei

[Mei Mei]

Just replying to Patrick's post from awhile back before my surgery.   I am now SSD on the right from the surgery and like Patrick the tinnitus is much louder in the deaf ear.  I am at home now so it's OK but sure wish it would go away.  This is something I will have to talk about with the ENTs on the Feb 22 visit.   They are suggesting me for the BAHA.  Does the BAHA help with the tinnitus as well?

Sincerely,
Mei Mei

[JerseyGirl2]

  Does the BAHA help with the tinnitus as well?

Hi,

I obviously can answer only for myself, but my BAHA has no effect whatsoever on tinnitus -- it makes it neither better nor worse. I'm fortunate that my tinnitus, while constant, is of the "it sounds like a seashell held to the ear" variety and it doesn't bother me terribly.

I will add that while I've never known of a BAHA wearer who feels that the BAHA makes his/her tinnitus more bearable there may be some who disagree.

I will also add that the BAHA offers lots of advantages -- so please don't stop considering it just because it may not favorably impact on your tinnitus. And remember that others on this forum have spoken very highly of the Trans-Ear, (and, to a lesser degree) the CROS system, and the yet-to-be released SoundBite. I'm betting that none of these helps tinnitus either, but maybe others will chime in with their comments.

Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)

[Mei Mei]

Thanks Catherine,  I've been wondering about this ever since I came home last Sunday and I know I have a long way to go before the BAHA surgery but it is on my mind.  My tinnitus is the ocean in the sea shell variety.  This is exactly how I explain it to the doctors and audiologists when I am visiting them.  It's just much louder than before the surgery now that I am deaf there.   Thanks for the reply.

Mei Mei

[leapyrtwins]

Mei Mei -

I am one of the lucky minority who don't have tinnitus.

I asked my neurotologist about it pre-BAHA because I didn't want the implant surgery to suddenly cause me to get it.

He told me that BAHAs usually don't have any effect on tinnitus.  If you have it pre-implant you will continue to have it after the surgery; if you don't, you won't.

He also said that the BAHA implant won't make tinnitus better or worse.

I agree with Catherine that the BAHA has many advantages, so don't let tinnitus dissuade you from getting one.

Jan