Thursday, March 16, 2017

I heard that the ringing in my ear can be fixed with surgery. Is that true?

Excellent question.  Ringing in the ears, ear noise, head noise or tinnitus is not all that uncommon.  It is estimated that about 15% of the US population has tinnitus to some degree.  That translates to roughly 20 million Americans.  Tinnitus cannot be cured by surgery.  In some cases where tinnitus is a secondary effect to a conductive loss, such otosclerosis (fusion of middle ear bone) or fluid behind the eardrum, then yes, potentially surgery could help alleviate the tinnitus.  Only because it can fix components of the hearing loss.  In the case of otosclerosis, the surgeons replace pieces of bones in the middle ear.  In the case of fluid behind the eardrum, the surgeons will place a pressure equalizing tube through the eardrum to remove the fluid.  In both of these cases, the surgeon is “curing” the hearing loss and by extension then helping with the tinnitus likely caused by the hearing loss.  However, surgery for tinnitus does not exist.  There have been cases where surgeons have actually cut the auditory nerve rendering the patient completely deaf and still the patient could hear their tinnitus.  Although there is no cure for tinnitus at this time, there are treatment plans or management options available. At Advanced Audiology Concepts, we offer the Progressive Tinnitus Management approach to our patients.  If you experience bothersome tinnitus and you are curious about Progressive Tinnitus Management, call and make an appointment at 440-205-8848.  


Life sounds great!  Enjoy every moment!


Jane Kukula, AuD & Ashley Spisak, AuD
8897 Mentor Ave
Mentor, Ohio 44060

440-205-8848

Fax: 440-205-9818




Thursday, March 2, 2017

Can hearing aids affect relationships?

This is a great question! How can hearing instruments affect your relationships? Typically people will experience a positive change in their relationships once they begin to wear hearing aids.  When a hearing loss goes for years without any intervention or without addressing the issue, it can take its toll on a relationship.  Loved ones can often become frustrated with untreated hearing loss because they have to repeat themselves numerous time, and even then their communication partner still didn’t understand.  Hearing aids can help you maintain your speech understanding capabilities and they can help you communicate with your partner more effectively.  The person trying to hear is less tired from all the effort put towards understanding, less frustrated being they don’t have to ask people to repeat as often and less apt to avoid social situations out of fear of not understanding.  The person communicating with the person with hearing loss is less frustrated and less resentful of their partners because they have taken a positive step toward trying to help themselves hear better.  If you are considering hearing instruments and would like to make an appointment, call 440-205-8848. 



Life sounds great!  Enjoy every moment!



Jane Kukula, AuD & Ashley Spisak, AuD
8897 Mentor Ave
Mentor, Ohio 44060

440-205-8848

Fax: 440-205-9818




The ringing in my ear stopped when the doctor removed earwax from my ear. What can I do to clean my ears?

The ear secretes oils from two different glands which mix together to produce earwax (or cerumen).  It is healthy and normal to have some earwax.  It cleans and protects your ears by collecting dirt, dust and other matter in the ear canal and moving them out of the ear.   Jaw movement whether from chewing or talking, helps to push earwax to the ear opening where it can be washed off with the wipe of a cloth. This is a normal process, but sometimes this self-cleaning process fails resulting in a buildup of earwax. When cerumen builds up it can block the ear canal and can cause a temporary decrease in hearing and when on the eardrum it can cause ringing in the ear.
Often, when someone attempts to “clean” the ear canals, earwax is pushed on the eardrum or deep into the ear canal. We DO NOT recommend using cotton swabs, paper clips, keys, ear candles, or other items which can push the wax deeper in the canal or harm the ear canal.  The American Academy of Otolaryngology recently published guidelines for cleaning your ear canals. Following these guidelines can help protect your ears:
·         Don't overdo it when cleaning your ears. Over cleaning can irritate the ear canal and possibly cause an infection.
·         Don't stick things in your ear. Cotton swabs, hair pins, toothpicks or other such objects can cause a cut in the ear canal, a hole in the eardrum, and/or dislocation of the hearing bones, causing problems including bleeding, hearing loss, dizziness and ringing.
·         Never use "ear candles." The guidelines say there is no evidence that this alternative medicine practice can remove impacted earwax. And so-called candling might cause serious damage to the ear canal and eardrum.

First and foremost, check with your audiologist or physician on whether or not you should clean your ears. Also, seek medical attention if you have ear drainage, bleeding or pain. Call 440-205-8848 to schedule an ear inspection and cerumen removal.  


Life sounds great!  Enjoy every moment!



Jane Kukula, AuD & Ashley Spisak, AuD
8897 Mentor Ave
Mentor, Ohio 44060

440-205-8848

Fax: 440-205-9818