I've had some pretty noticeable tinnitus in my right ear lately, and was referred to an audiologist for a hearing test as the first step in rooting out the cause. Apparently, all cases of tinnitus are referred for hearing tests first, because, as the doctor doing the exam told me, "[general practitioners] don't know what else to do." It's frustrating, but at least the test was free, and I learned a couple of things, among them that I have a little hearing loss in the ear without the tinnitus. Go figure.
The doctor shared an interesting story. Several years ago, it seems, this particular clinic hosted weekly tinnitus checkups. On Saturday mornings, patients could see a maxillofacial specialist, a neurologist, a dentist and a host of other specialists in one place, all in hopes of finding the cause of their particular stripe of tinnitus. One such patient was a woman who was so sick of suffering from tinnitus that she opted to have her auditory nerve severed to rid herself of the affliction. She knew going in that she would be deaf in the affected ear, but it was worth it to her to have relief. After the surgery, she awakens to find that, yes, she's deaf in the affected ear...but the tinnitus is still there. It was then, the doctor told me, that he stopped participating in the weekly clinics.
Now it's up to my GP to take the next step in diagnosing the cause of my tinnitus. Until my next appointment, I'll be happy to pace myself. The audiologist's little cautionary tale was a reminder that my own second opinion can be the most important.
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