Very scared, possible inflamation of temporal artery

E

Evol

New member
HI Mountain Reader! Sorry that you are suffering too. I am on the immunology shots. I just started in Sept. so I have a long ways to go. But on top of my allergies I seem to have a jaw problem too. They say I have arthritis in my left jaw. I have pressure near both ears and a little more on the left. I just finished up some prednisone. I still have the pressure and the feeling of needing to pop open the ears. I have some slight dizziness too. Do you have that?:confused: How do you deal with all this. I am suppose to see the ENT tomorrow again and I have no idea the plan of action he is going to take with me. He mentioned sinus surgery to open up my passages more. I already said NO WAY!!! NO WAY!! That is a VERY last resort. So I am always gonna be on zyrtec, sudefed and nasonex and Lord knows what else.
 
For the allergies, I was on Allegra (had to stop the "D" because it was affecting my blood pressure), Astelin, Flonase and Singulair. The Singular does double duty for my asthma. I also use saline nasal spray to keep my nose hydrated. NeilMed has a new hydrating spray gel. I also like Xlear. Have you tried using a Neti Pot to help keep your sinuses clear? With winter you might also need a humidifier.

The ear popping is an annoyance. I'm hopeful I'll find something that will work. I know if I go back to the ENT, I'll probably end up needing a CT scan I really can't afford. I had to pay out of pocket for the TMJ dentist and I've already paid $400 for PT this month that I hadn't planned on. The dentist also wants me to have a sleep study done. He said that TMJ, hypertension and reflux are all signs of a sleep disorder. It will probably cost me about $1200 for that according to a couple people at work. (Have to meet a new deductible and pay 20%.)

I wasn't on Prednisone for my ear, but I've been on it twice for my asthma since this started and didn't notice a difference.

My pressure is just one-sided. My right is really out of whack. It bothers me that my hearing has gone from normal to a moderate hearing loss in the last two years. I have no idea why. I'm wondering if it is related to the TMJ thing.

I've also found out that my bum shoulder is affecting my jaw. My shoulder is chronically sore and the shoulder tightness is carrying up to my neck and jaw. The TMJ dentist said I need to get the shoulder treated to help my jaw. I've got hyperflexiblity in my shoulder though that isn't "fixable" so I figure I'm stuck in a no win situation.

Good luck at the ENT tomorrow. I was thinking of scheduling an appointment with mine again, but haven't wanted to deal with the potential costs from it. I actually go to my ENT for my allergies now and they've been great in that regard. (Much more friendly and aggressive than my old Allergy/Asthma clinic.)
 
TEdds83,

Ironically, I woke this morning with a lot of ear pain in my right ear, the one that hasn't popped since March. I called my ENT and got a morning appointment. He spent a while talking to me then did the examination. He scoped me to take a look at my Eustacian tubes. They were OK. He talked about putting me on oral steroids, but decided not to when I told him I was on them last month for my asthma and my ear didn't clear during that time. He did put me on some nasal steroids again for a couple weeks. He also gave me a prescription strength anti-inflammatory and a muscle relaxer for a couple weeks. We'll see if it helps.

He also told me if my asthma, triggered by the cold air we've been having, doesn't get better soon that he will look at an alternate treatment there as well.

I'm really excited that he also has a new med for my itchy ears. Up until now, I've been told there wasn't much they could do for that.

I'll keep you posted on if the muscle relaxant and stronger anti-inflammatories really help. I got a call from my PT's office that insurance hasn't approved any further visits and that I've hit my limit with 8 visits. They are trying to get authorization there, but I'm not very hopeful. May need to pay out of pocket.

Let me know how your visit went today.

MountainReader
 
Hi Mountain Reader! Thanks for posting! Was at the ENT yesterday complaining of my dizzines and ear congestion feeling. He says its all related to the front nasal congestion I have. He says I have small air passages and is still recommending sinus surgery for me. He says its a 20 minutes procedure where he scrapes come cartilage down to allow me more room for breathing. I told him I am not ready for that and need more time to think. :( So unsure...I am a singer, it could change the way I sound. Not to mention the pain and suffering. But tonight I am dizzy again! And my ears need popping. It is 3 degrees out tonight. He mentioned that the cold weather has a big factor into the dizzy thing. I just hate it! I am constanting on Zyrtec, Sudfed and my nasal sprays. I just don't remember have the dizzy thing happen as much as it is this year.

What do you think about all this? Do you think yours is because of this?
 
I went though something like this recently. Lots of pressure in both ears but the worst was the right ear. Felt like I needed to pop it like when your on a mountain. It started with dizziness, I almost passed out in the store. It kept getting worse til I couldn't even stand loud noise, it would make a whoosing sound in my ear.

The Dr put me on antibiotics for a week. It helped with the worst of it but I still have some lingering dizziness. So most likely it was an inner ear infection or virus. If its an virus that can take weeks to clear up. I was sick with it for a while before the Dr thought to try the antibiotics. I thought it was going to last forever and was really worried since I couldn't even drive.

I hope you are feeling better soon.
 
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