deogloria11
Member
I have been suffering through some odd symptoms since about 5 months post-op (Bovine tissue valve and aortic graft). I have episodes of vertigo (dizziness) which are mostly mild, but sometimes severe and lead to nausea and vomiting. There are other symptoms, but that's the most common. Then recently I had a bad episode of mild dizziness and severe tinnitus, followed by partial hearing loss in one ear. It went away mostly in a few minutes, the rest of the symptoms disappeared after a few hours. I still feel, days later, that hearing in my left ear is only at about 98%.
I've had many tests over the last year (multiple ER trips). I was worried it was a brain aneurysm, but I've had 1 CT and 2 MRI tests (8 months apart), and there have been no changes. I've also had ekg's and an echo for some chest pain episodes I've had (still undiagnosed, echo was fine).
Now that I've had the tinnitus and hearing loss, and I know the MRI came back negative, I'm thinking it's Meniere's Disease. I know at least one other member on this forum has this. Does anyone else?
Here's what made me start thinking:
"The most prevalent opinion is that an acute attack of Meniere's disease results from fluctuating pressure of the fluid within the inner ear. A system of membranes, called the membranous labyrinth, contains a fluid called endolymph. The membranes can become dilated like a balloon when pressure increases. This is called 'hydrops'."
Notice the "dilated like a balloon"? I don't know about you, but when I hear something about membranes becoming dilated, I think BAVD. Knowing I'm walking around with stretchy arteries, I'm kinda wired that way, now. :wink2: So it made me wonder if Meniere's could possibly be yet another symptom of BAVD, along with the bicuspid valves and the aneurysms. Maybe BAVD can cause those membranes to be more susceptible to dilating, because they're so stretchy. (Any doctors out there? Would membranes in the ear be considered "connective tissue"? Sounds like it to me, and BAVD is a connective tissue disease.)
The main symptom of Meniere's is the vertigo (dizziness). I've heard many people on this forum talk about dizziness. Now there are a lot of causes of dizziness, particularly in pre-op patients, because that can be a symptom of the valve problem. But I wonder how many people here, that are way out after their surgery (a year or more, like me) and are having symptoms of Meniere's, and it's being brushed off as something minor, or "post-op complications", etc.
I'd love to hear from anyone out there with BAVD who has Meniere's Disease or any of its symptoms, particularly if you are past the post-op healing stage. Also, I'd like to know if any of your close relatives have it, since BAVD appears to be a hereditary disease.
Thanks!
(On a good note, if I have Meniere's, that's way better than an aneurysm, accoustic neuroma, or other possibilities. The possibility of permanent hearing loss sucks, though. :rolleyes2
I've had many tests over the last year (multiple ER trips). I was worried it was a brain aneurysm, but I've had 1 CT and 2 MRI tests (8 months apart), and there have been no changes. I've also had ekg's and an echo for some chest pain episodes I've had (still undiagnosed, echo was fine).
Now that I've had the tinnitus and hearing loss, and I know the MRI came back negative, I'm thinking it's Meniere's Disease. I know at least one other member on this forum has this. Does anyone else?
Here's what made me start thinking:
"The most prevalent opinion is that an acute attack of Meniere's disease results from fluctuating pressure of the fluid within the inner ear. A system of membranes, called the membranous labyrinth, contains a fluid called endolymph. The membranes can become dilated like a balloon when pressure increases. This is called 'hydrops'."
Notice the "dilated like a balloon"? I don't know about you, but when I hear something about membranes becoming dilated, I think BAVD. Knowing I'm walking around with stretchy arteries, I'm kinda wired that way, now. :wink2: So it made me wonder if Meniere's could possibly be yet another symptom of BAVD, along with the bicuspid valves and the aneurysms. Maybe BAVD can cause those membranes to be more susceptible to dilating, because they're so stretchy. (Any doctors out there? Would membranes in the ear be considered "connective tissue"? Sounds like it to me, and BAVD is a connective tissue disease.)
The main symptom of Meniere's is the vertigo (dizziness). I've heard many people on this forum talk about dizziness. Now there are a lot of causes of dizziness, particularly in pre-op patients, because that can be a symptom of the valve problem. But I wonder how many people here, that are way out after their surgery (a year or more, like me) and are having symptoms of Meniere's, and it's being brushed off as something minor, or "post-op complications", etc.
I'd love to hear from anyone out there with BAVD who has Meniere's Disease or any of its symptoms, particularly if you are past the post-op healing stage. Also, I'd like to know if any of your close relatives have it, since BAVD appears to be a hereditary disease.
Thanks!
(On a good note, if I have Meniere's, that's way better than an aneurysm, accoustic neuroma, or other possibilities. The possibility of permanent hearing loss sucks, though. :rolleyes2