Otosclerosis & Stapedectomy

Phaictan

Anyone have this condition and have had the associated operation performed?

If you don't know what it is, think yourself lucky.

Cheers

S.

Regarding a stapedectomy, does anyone know where it can be done in Munster?

Really? I was under the impression that the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear hospital was THE place, after doing lots of internet research. What is it REALLY like to have it done? Painful? Local r general anaesthetic? Goriness etc etc?

bipedalhumanoid

OsciiBoscii wrote: »

Really? I was under the impression that the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear hospital was THE place, after doing lots of internet research. What is it REALLY like to have it done? Painful? Local r general anaesthetic? Goriness etc etc?

I suppose it's possible that when the consultant told me this he meant that Beaumont was the only place with the equipment accessible to him. I don't know for sure as I don't know exactly how it is that they determine which consultants can work out of which hospital. What I do know is that my consultant normally works out of Blackrock clinic but they didn't have the equipment. If I was aware of any option other than Beaumont I would have taken it. I say this because Beaumont is an emergency hospital and tends to only give a few hours notice of the availability of a bed. In my case I had 7 surgical dates cancelled because there was no bed for me on the day of surgery. This is despite having plan E VHI cover. I should add that when I finally got my bed I received excellent care at Beaumont.

In my case I had very little pain after surgery. In fact I was given paracetamol for pain and that was adequate. But this varies. When I had my first ear done I was in considerably more pain and was given morphine after the surgery.

For me, the biggest challenge during recovery was the diziness. Moving around tends to churn your stomach. When food was brought to me the nurses insisted that I sit up in bed... which of course made me too nauseous to eat. I know that if they'd just let me do it my own way I would have been able to hold it down... but I'm sure they have their reasons.

They planned to keep me in for 2 nights but extended that because the diziness and nausea persisted for a number of days. Overall I was in for 4 nights. When I had the first ear done I was sent home the day following surgery (in for only one night).

My surgeon completed the procedure in such a way that he made a small incision in my ear which required two stitches. My previous surgeon did not do this. Two weeks after surgery the stitches came out and I went back to work. My middle ear was packed with dressings and these were removed 3 weeks after surgery (last friday). This was relatively painless and was done in the consultant's office. At this time he injected some antibiotic cream into my ear which will take 6 weeks to disolve.

So far my hearing has not been restored fully (it's bad enough that I can't use that ear when using a phone) but all signs are very positive. It's a matter now of waiting for 6-8 weeks and seeing how it heals.

Going back to my first experience with this procedure, a complication developed at about this stage in the process. As my ear healed, enough scar tissue formed that it pushed the prosthetic out of place. A second procedure followed to remove the prosthetic and cut away the scar tissue. I was then referred to a prof. who specialises in the ear alone (as opposed to ENT). He completed the procedure successfully restoring hearing in that ear to 95%. This was in 2002 and my recent hearing tests confirmed that I still have 95% hearing in that ear.

I should also note that I had the first ear done in a private hospital in Australia (because that is where I was living at the time).

Thank you so much for that detailed information. Its what I was really looking for, as books/websites don't ever have that info. If I do go down that road I now have a fair idea of what to expect. Thanks again.

bipedalhumanoid

OsciiBoscii wrote: »

Thank you so much for that detailed information. Its what I was really looking for, as books/websites don't ever have that info. If I do go down that road I now have a fair idea of what to expect. Thanks again.

No worries. Just noticed there was one question I didn't answer. They use a general aenesthetic. I couldn't eat or drink from midnight the night before and for about 24 hours after the op they insist on keeping you elevated so you can't sleep flat on your back. Might not be a problem for some but I found it highly irritating. Their reasons for doing that have something to do with the aenesthetic (not sure why exactly). Also had me on oxygen for the first 24 hours after the op.

timbel

Hi Bipedal

Old thread I know.
How did your 2nd ear turn out after op in Beaumount?
I need to have this done and I have option between 2 consultants - 1 based in Adelaide and 1 in based in Beaumount.

Thanks

ejlc

Hi, i know tis is an old thread, but would appreciate it if anyone could tell me who are the consultatns who do stapedectomies in Dublin?

thanks

gqma0

Old thread but I thought I'd share my experience

I'm a 41y old male

Last year, I started to notice that my headset was lower than usual on conference calls with the volume up and I thought there was something wrong with it but when I switched on the other ear, there was a huge difference. Now, I had experienced pain in my left ear before that happened (for no longer than 5s) as if someone was poking my eardrum. I thought my ear needed to be syringed and went to my GP but the nurse said that my ears were clean.

So I went for an hearing test which showed an imbalance between the left and right ear. Following these results, my GP referred me to an ENT specialist in the Matter private clinic who diagnosed me with Otosclerosis. He gave me 3 options (do nothing, Hearing aid or surgery). He advised me to go with the hearing aid.

After doing some research and considering my options, the hearing aid was a bit expensive even with the allowance so I took my chance and opted for surgery because I have an active life but the one thing I was really annoyed at was the constant tinnitus which developed gradually in my hearing loss and that was really really annoying. It's like someone is constantly whistling in your ear at a low volume.

The chosen procedure was a stapedectomy (different from stapedotomy) which involves a tiny prosthesis put in place. Because my ENT wasn't doing this type of operation on a regular basis, he referred me to another colleague at the Hermitage private clinic. Following another hearing test booked at Beaumont private clinic, I was then booked for surgery at the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear hospital last summer.

I had the operation on Jul 4th. The operation doesn't last very long (up to 60mn) and I woke up with no pain, just a dressing in the ear and cotton but no bandages or anything like that (it's discreet). Apart from feeling dizzy, I was fine. I didn't experience any pain during the night neither but I took some painkillers just in case. I was discharged the following day with an appointment to come back the following week.

During the week, I only experienced dizziness when I was doing light exercises such as lifting things or bending over to grab something but no pain. I had to shower with a glass covering my ear to avoid the dressing from getting wet. You can start hearing sounds within the following days

7 days later, I went back to the hospital to get the dressing removed and it literally takes 10s. I started to hear again but it's more like when you get out of the swimming pool (sounds are not fully audible but come in and out). It took a few weeks to hear completely.

the following weeks, I took it easy and I was dying to get back into training, I did a 10k practice run 3 weeks after the op and felt slightly dizzy. I did the Fingal 10k the week after and did a good time despite the lack of training.
I also did the Rock'n'roll 1/2 marathon and no more dizziness

6 weeks after the operation, I went back to the hospital for another hearing test and assess the results and surprisingly, my ear is 100% back to normal.
The operation was a complete success.

I hope my experience might be of a benefit to others in their decision. Things to consider

- You can not travel by plane for 6 to 8 weeks.
- I felt dizzy a few times but only because I was doing things I wasn't supposed to do.
- I've only felt nauseous once, again because I was lifting heavy things.

sunshine78

Hi there,
I have found your post very interesting. I am wondering if your health insurer covered the cost of the operation. How bad was your hearing in your ears before you decided to have surgery?
I went for a hearing test yesterday as I had notice a decrease in my hearing.They confirmed this and suggested that it is looking like Ottosclerosis. I am 35 (female), I will in due course be referred to an ENT as it is most probably Ottoscerosis-my mum also has it and there is a genetic component.I think that I will go down the route of surgery as I see the hassle that my mum has with hearing aids.
How has your hearing been since the surgery etc .

thanks

gqma0

sunshine78 wrote: »

Hi there,
I have found your post very interesting. I am wondering if your health insurer covered the cost of the operation. How bad was your hearing in your ears before you decided to have surgery?
I went for a hearing test yesterday as I had notice a decrease in my hearing.They confirmed this and suggested that it is looking like Ottosclerosis. I am 35 (female), I will in due course be referred to an ENT as it is most probably Ottoscerosis-my mum also has it and there is a genetic component.I think that I will go down the route of surgery as I see the hassle that my mum has with hearing aids.
How has your hearing been since the surgery etc .

thanks

The operation has been fully covered by VHI and I didn't have to pay anything. My hearing deteriorated rapidly at the point that I couldn't make the difference between ambient sound and TV sound and also the fact that I couldn't hear low frequencies. I had to be careful crossing the road sometimes. 2 reasons why I went for surgery

1) the cost of hearing aids. Even the cheapest one was expensive enough even with the treatment benefit scheme which didn't cover even half of the cost (up to a maximum of €500) and tbh, I didn't have the finances at the time.

2) the fact that I had a constant buzzing (tinitus) that developed overtime which was driving me mad.

Surgery was the best option IMO. Since the operation last July, my hearing is back to Normal and I can hear fine. Feel free to PM me for more info as someone also asked me for further questions. I can also give you the name of the ENT who operated me.

btw, below is a mail in regards to info and cost of hearing aids following my 1st visit at the ENT.

---

Most hearing aids now a days are digital , I fit only digital or wireless hearing aids which has only been released recently to customers.
The difference between normal digital aids and wireless is that wireless balances out noise and speech when in a room by talking to each other however this would be for people who wear two hearing aids
You would only need one for now.

There are different models.There is a CIC which is an aids that sits completely in the ear. I would take an impression of your ear so that it fits right in the canal , these are expensive. It's called a sound lens hearing aid
and for one its 3450 euros or if covered under your prsi 2950 euros.
The next one would be behind the ear again very discreet and a good bit cheaper. This starts at 1150 or 650 if covered under prsi again. I have the forms to fill in to see if your covered.

The down side to any hearing aid is water. So swimming or any waters sports would be out for wearing them. Running no problem and you can get earplugs specialy made for concerts however your hearing aid would be better for concerts. They last as long as you take care of them and they come with a two year guarantee. You can always up grade if a better model comes out and you require more out of your hearing aid. If your hearing changes over time we can reprogramme your aid to adapt.

The best thing might be for you to come back in to me and I can show you the different types of aids and send off your prsi form to see if your qualified. This does not mean you have to go ahead with anything it's just information I will be giving you.

---

Hope that helps

sunshine78

Thank you so much for your response to my questions.I hope to get an appointment with ent soon. I will be in touch with more questions then.

Kay81

Can some one please tell me names of consultants or clinic who performs stapdectomy. Thanks

Vorsprung

Kay81 wrote: »

Can some one please tell me names of consultants or clinic who performs stapdectomy. Thanks

No.

Please read the charter.

Thread closed.