No Balance

[tenai98]

OKay, had my ENG test and I have no balance on my left side...Right side is in complete control...Which I guess is good as the ENT said there wont be any balance issues after surgery as there is none...They had to put the ice water in my ear...OUCHHHHHHH....and I was never good in Math, so I really had to concentrate to count backwards from 125 in 3's

JO

[wendysig]

Jo,
The fact that your balance is gone in your AN ear is actually great news.  My doc told me I had lost a "fair bit"  of balance in that ear  and never really explained what that meant -- one of the few things he was unclear about.  Although my balance issues are not terrible, my balance was worse after surgery as a result of the nerve being cut.    While this too has improved, I am hopeful that I will regain even more.  I'm glad for your sake this is not an issue you will have to deal with.

Best wishes,
Wendy

[JerseyGirl2]

Jo,

I agree with Wendy that you've received good news. My AN presumably grew so slowly over the course of years, giving my non-AN side ample time to take over, that I never experienced any balance issues either before or after surgery. I am very thankful for that, and hope that it will be a big plus for you as well.

Catherine (JerseyGirl2)

[Tumbleweed]

My doc told me I had lost a "fair bit"  of balance in that ear  and never really explained what that meant -- one of the few things he was unclear about. 

I had this explained to me about a year and a half ago, so I'm a little fuzzy now on what the explanation was. But if I remember correctly, the doctor looks at how much nystagmus is evoked on your bad (AN) side compared to that evoked on your good side by one of the balance tests they do. (Less nystagmus means the balance nerve is less responsive to stimulus and therefore damaged.) They come up with a percentage result which roughly corresponds to the "amount" of balance that was destroyed on your bad side. Or sumpthin' like that....


Best wishes,
Tumbleweed

[ernie h]

my doc told me that when they removed my tumor they remove all of the balance mechanism in that side.my surgery was done on aug 2007.my wonky head is still an issue as i see it is for others.tumbleweed gave me a much better explanation of the testing they are going to do than my dr did.i'm scheduled in a few weeks for a vemp test and a rotational chair test.the dr told me if there were any balance nerve fibers left in my bad side it would send false signals to the brain and affect my recovery.it appears that if they find that to be the case the inject i believe gentamicin to kill whatever may be left.i understand for people with hearing it can be a poss problem but since i lost my hearing completely 2 wks post surgery i guess (or hope) i have nothing to lose.good luck to all.