Recent MRI - Profound Deafness in Right Ear - Potential AN?

[zacharyp]

Hi All - Long Story Short...
Suddenly in the middle of the day I felt like I got wacked in the side of the head. The next day I had extreme veritgo. 3 days later I have permanent profound deafness in my right ear. I was on Steroids and over the course of a month I feel better but am still deaf with tinnitus and sharp pains randomly, but my balance has improved.

I had an MRI but have not heard from the doctor yet. In looking at the image, I see a clear difference from left side to right side. Could this just be an infection result or does this look similar to a AN.

I realize most of us are not medical professionals here, but I imagine most have looked at their own MRI's.

Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks!

[CHD63]

Hi zacharyp and welcome to this forum .....

You are correct that none of us are medical professionals on this forum.  You are also correct that many of us put the CD from our MRIs into our computers and try to figure out what we are seeing.

As I am sure you know, there are many black, gray and white spots scattered throughout an MRI scan.  Only a professional should attempt to diagnose anything from a scan.  That being said ..... there does appear to be something on the right side (scans are backwards so the white spot seeming to be on the left is actually the right side of your head).  Only your doctor should tell you what it is, however.

Thoughts and prayers and let us know what your doctor says.

Clarice

[zacharyp]

Thanks Clarice.

The doctor called me and was very ambiguous. He asked me to get a white blood cell count tomorrow and then we will circle back. Wish me luck!

[CHD63]

..... wishing you luck and correct answers!

Many thoughts and prayers.

Clarice

[rupert]

Clarise is right that the scans are a bit confusing. What appears to be on the left is actually your right side.  It certainly is in the area you could see an AN.  I'm sure your doctor will have a full consult with you about it.  Very hard to wait for such talks I know.   If you peruse the forums there are links to and pictures of other AN's.   Lots of help here on the forums  as you acquire more info. Good luck.

[Mimispree]

I'm so sorry you are stuck in a rather uncomfortable hallway.  I found doing research online about the different traditional and newer strategies about the debulking or removal of ANs very empowering.  Also, learning that AN surgery is VERY safe is reassuring also, because if we all went by the movies we watch this would be a very meager forum.  By reading posts in this forum, I've deduced that the recovery after surgery can be a super test of one's patience; and that being in the watch & wait group can be a bit unnerving.  When you do have a consult with your doctors, know that you are not alone and you have many caring people with experience to help support you to be an informed patient.

It's also a great place to get rid of the jitters and the blues..  So keep us in your side pocket.

Be well,
Michelle

[PaulW]

OK I am not a medical professional.... so whatever I say should be taken as complete rubbish.

This thing on the right side (left side of the picture) does not look like an acoustic neuroma to me. I'm not certain what it is, it could be completely harmless.... My vote is for the internal jugular artery filled with gadolinium dye lighting up like a light bulb.

My MRI had lots of frightening looking things, all of which were completely harmless and normal.. Arteries, mucous cysts, and lots of other things that looked weird but were normal.

I think these slices are too low in the skull.... I dont see the Internal Auditory Canal or the cochlear....
So post more slices.... pretty sure we are looking at the wrong place, too low in the skull and its the internal jugular artery

[PaulW]

There are lots of reasons people go deaf suddenly in one ear... Infection is a lot more common than an Acoustic Neuroma. If they are looking for a White blood cell count, it sounds like they are investigating a possible infection...

[arizonajack]

 does this look similar to a AN.

Looks exactly like an AN. That's where they grow and that's what they look like. Looks like about 1.5cm or better and probably in the internal auditory canal like mine is.

Go on google images and search acoustic neuroma mri and you'll see many images of small, medium, and large ANs. You'll find many that look like yours.

I wouldn't say it's conclusive. That's for your doctors to decide. But I suggest that you have the images looked at by an AN specialist.

[ANGuy]

I think if it was an AN, your Dr wouldn't be ordering a white cell count.  Looking at that scan, and guessing what it shows, for people like us, is like guessing the amount of jelly beans in a jar.  A radiologist has already looked at that scan and forwarded a report to your Dr.

[Crazycat]

No. Short of performing a biopsy on a growth, a white blood count is a standard test performed to help determine an individual's state of health.

A range of disorders can cause decreases in white blood cells. An increase of white blood cells can also be caused by a wide-range of conditions i.e. , different inflammations (infections), cancer and even use of certain medications.

Blood work is a standard procedure performed on all patients so as to give an attending doctor a general sense of a person's health.

I should know by now, I've been through enough of it.