deaf in one ear?

[rachaelersk]

about 18 months ago i had an ear infection and because i was very pregnant at the time they could not give anti biotics so decided to burst the ear drum and insert a gromit. After this i became deaf in this one ear. Now this far on i have real trouble hearing on the phone, i dread it and have to have silence to hear the person also have to struggle to hear when others talk and other noises are around me. Do you think i am deaf in this one ear and have kind of got used to it, or do you think that my hearing has come back but not to full capasity. No one tells you what will happen and i dont even know if the gromit has come out or not??

[misska]

Hi Rachaelersk. When I was 5 I had gromits put in both my ears because of fluid behind my ear drums. One of the gromits came out soon enough after the operation like it was supposed to but the other one took years. I also had a lot of ear infections after my operation. Now I don't have perfect hearing in either ear because of scar tissue on my ear drums. Its not very bad but still not perfect and I have trouble hearing some people or in crowds etc. I blame the gromits, I don't think they were such a good idea and I have met other people that have had the same problem. I now have a hearing aid in one ear. It really helps and I rarely have a problem hearing anyone these days. But its early days with you yet!! Probably the gromit is still in there or you have scar tissue which might heal. Go to your audiologist and get your hearing tested, they'll be able to tell you if the gromit is out or not. Good luck. M :-)

[l_h_kings]

Hi Rachael,

I suffer from a condition called otosclerosis which just effects my left ear. I suffered for a long time and saw 3 different GP's who all gave me different diagnosises:(more like guesses)  wax build up, blocked sinuses and water retention. The 4th GP I saw refered me to ENT where they performed several hearing tests and ear examinations and diagnosed it as otosclerosis.

This condition is usually worsened and therefore often only discovered during pregnancy ( I think my was first triggered by the synthetic pregnancy hormones in the pill) so may be what you are suffering from.

I struggled with my hearing for a several years and even became withdrawn when with groups of people as I failed to keep up with the conversation.

I now have a (not very glamerous) hearing aid which I just could not live without now. When I take it out it drives me mad not being able to hear properly and I don't know how or why I put up with it for so long.

My advise would be to get your GP to refer you to ENT for some hearing tests.

HTH

[jno]

Take this one to an audiologist. Grommets normally pop out after a few months - the skin of eardrums grows outwards from the middle in a sort of spiral so the grommets will slowly spiral out toward the edge of the eardrum while also slowly coming out. When they do come out, they may just drop out on to your pillow or in the shower unnoticed. While they are in place they function as tiny drainage tubes. Perhaps yours has come out and you've got another infection or build-up of fluid? (This is normally drained out via the nose but infection or inflammation may block this route.) Anyway, have it checked properly.

[rachaelersk]

Many thanks for all your answers everyone, i will go to the doctors and get a hearing test. It's nice to read different points of view and opinions. Thanks again.