Catswold, Talk to Me Girl!

I am so glad to hear that the tmj pain and symptoms have decreased. Sadly, I don't know too much to tell you about what the ent said about the ear situation. I have never heard of ostoclerosis so I checked a medical dictionary and could not find anything even trying different spellings. Do you think you could get the doc to spell the word for you so we can do some research?

I've also never heard of a virus aggravating by tmj but that does sound plausible. Any ear infection you get is going to be affected by your tmjs because of the closeness of the inner ear and disc. My left ear is almost always slightly uncomfortable and it has tinnitus off and on. I also have my doc check it all the time and they will say, "oh, it's red, or, there's a little fluid in there," but never suggest what I could do. I actually figured it was because it was my tmj and the docs just don't know what to do. I have never been to an ent and have thought about going to one (more though for my throat because I have swallowing problems sometimes because of this stupid tmj).

Did you ever have an mri? Whereas I don't think they are as necessary as we seem to think they are, in your case i'm wondering if they can find out if the disc or joint cartilage or something is pressing against the inner ear giving you pressure and tinnitus. If that were true, I don't know what could be done. I'm wondering though if you found a good massage therapist if he or she could work in that area.

Do you take anything for sinus problems (like sudafed)? When I was younger I took sudafed almost daily because of my ears. I think it helped a little, but I honestly can't remember very well. It could work because if your ears or sinuses are slightly aggravated, they swell. The swelling could then make the inner ear swell against the jaw joint and if you have a pain jaw joint due to tmj, it might aggravate you even more than than a normal sinus problem. You might try icing the joint area right in front of the ear sometimes to see what that does (for any swelling).

I'm sorry i'm no help this time. I would like to see if you can get a spelling of that osteo word. I'd love to research it. I think you were wise to go to the ent. It will be interesting to see what he does to help you. Make sure to keep me informed (and get the osto spelling).

Carol

Witt - i'm all excited about a "dysfunction" or something that I ran across accidentally when I saw the word, "otalgia" in an internet article about a tmj study. The study didn't say anything other than the word under ears so I googled it. I haven't read too much yet, but it sure might explain your ear problems as well as mine. Wow, this is so cool (that I found the word, not the dysfunction).

I was also writing to tell you about an excellent tmj book that I found a little while ago and it's now on-line. There is a short chapter about ears that you might want to check out. Http://www.Headandneck.Com/book /

hope you are feeling well and check out the websites. Let me know what you think.
Carol

Dear carol, my spelling is terrible. The correct term is otosclerosis. Strange thing today and yesterday though. I did not wear my bite all day and my ears did not fill up and pop near as much when I wore it. Iam still getting the uneasy and queasy feelings though. Thanks for your efforts and research though. As you know, it is a miserable road!

Hi my name is jamie.When I was 13 I had a brain tumor.I had to have
some radiation treatments for my tumor.I need to what you can do to make a trigeminal nerve to quit hurting.Mine hurts all the time.I lay on a
hot heating and take tylenol all the time.I also take some codeine.I just want somebody who else who has had this to tell me to tell what to do for
the pain.Thanks

Hi jamie,
i'm sorry to hear about your problems. Question - are they sure it is tn and not tmj? The two go together frequently and get misdiagnosed often. Doctors don't seem to know about tmj.

Tn is supposedly the worst pain there is. I studied it a little bit when my tmj got worse a few years back and my face started burning. I did find that tens helped a little (i have a portable machine at home), but the biggest help for me was a newer medication called lyrica, a nerve pain killer. It's supposedly safer to take than neurontin, a common nerve pain killer. I didn't notice an immediate relief of pain but over time, the pain wasn't as bad. Talk to your parents (if you are still a minor) and doctors and see if these (tens & lyrica) are something you can do.

Tylenol really won't do much of anything i'm sorry to say. And I don't know if ibuprofen would be any better or not. Ibu helps me for my tmj and other pains the best. Hydrocodone also helps me better than codeine. Moist heat is good for your face. Cranial sacral massage might be something to look into.

Talk to your doctors jamie. You shouldn't have to suffer so much. Double check for tmj. I so hope and pray that you feel better soon. Oh, and do lots of research over the internet. I find knowledge to be extremely beneficial just in knowing what to try sometimes.

Take care and god bless...
Carol
(catswolds, formerly catswold)

I was reading posts...I saw that you wanted answers to fix your tinnitus? ANd braintumorman wanted help with the trigeminal nerve?

I know B12 vitamin shots are suppose to help with that (tinnitus and nerve issues), it has been proven that they are effective in reducing tinnitus, and suppose to help with nerve regeneration! So ask your doctor to give you them, they work miracles for ear issues.

I dont have tinnitus,but I do have TMJ and mild diminished subjective hearing loss, I dont know how its going to progress...it worries me but Im not sure what can be done to fix it, it seems to come whenever I have colds/sore throats. I dont have any tmj pain, just these ear symptoms on the left joint.

Anyways hope this helps, and if you know anything abt subj. hearing loss please post thanks.