Expert: Harriet B Jacobster, Au.D. - 1/21/2009

Question
QUESTION: i hope you can help me. i had dried blood in my right ear after a facelift 24 days ago. the ear felt clogged and i had a high pitched sound in it. i went to the ENT doctor a couple of times and he removed hard pieced of dried blood on both occassions with a curette which was very uncomfortable. it is now 5 days since my last visit to the ENT doctor and i still have tinnitus in the right ear.  i've had all the tests possible and my hearing is perfect and my tympanic membrane is fine. I went to another ENT doctor today and the ear canal looks a little irritated, but otherwise fine. he said to just leave the ear alone.  he gave me Lipoflavanoids to take.  i think the facelift caused this.  i didn't have tinnitus before the surgery. I still have numbness around my ears and lower face and i'm thinking maybe this is related to the tinnitus. the ENT doctor feels it's temporary and will go away eventually. he doesn't want to put anything in my ear including any solutions to flush it out.  what is your opinion? do you think it will go away?  do you think the curette could have permanently damaged my ear? [again, the tympanic membrane is fine.}
your opinion would be very much appreciated. thank you.

ANSWER: Hi Gail,
I have seen hearing loss, tinnitus and numbness on several occasions after a face lift.  There are nerves in the face that run close to the ear and, if inflamed, could cause all the symptoms you describe.  If these symptoms do not resolve, I think you should return to the doctor that did the face lift. It is possible that, with time, your symptoms may resolve, but it is just as possible that they may not. As for the curette, I doubt very much that it caused any damage to your ears.
Hope this helps.
Harriet B. Jacobster AuD
Board Certified in Audiology


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thank you for responding,  but i have a follow-up question. you said that that nerves close to the ear might have been inflamed by my facelift and are causing tinnitus. it is my understanding that tinnitus comes from within the inner ear. so how could nerves that are close to the ear cause this?  I'm confused.
I alread told the plastic surgeon about this and he said that there is no way that the surgery could have caused this.  what could he do about it anyway at this point?
thank you.


Answer
Hi Gail,
Usually, tinnitus is caused by inner ear problems.  However, it can also be caused by inflammation of nerves in the face which run very close to the auditory nerve itself.  If the auditory nerve becomes inflamed, then you could also encounter tinnitus.  Most likely, your symptoms are due to post-operative trauma, something that is not uncommon.  Usually it disappears when the swelling and inflammation resolves.  You may want to talk to your plastic surgeon and find out how long you can expect the numbness and inflammation should last.  
Hope this helps.
Harriet B. Jacobster, AuD
Board Certified in Audiology