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Have Had Cold And Shingles. Have Trouble In Hearing From One Ear. What Can Be Done?

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Posted on Tue, 23 Jul 2013
Question: I have had a cold and shingles. Now i am having trouble hearing ourt of one ear and have noticed while on a phone in my left they sound like a robot and my right ear sounds fine? Please advise
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Answered by Dr. Sumit Bhatti (3 hours later)
Hi,

Thank you for your query.

1. Get your ear drums examined and get the following hearing tests done:
a. Pure Tone Audiometry (PTA)
b. Tympanometry (Impedance Audiometry)
c. Speech Discrimination Score (SDS) if there is a sensorineural or mixed deafness.

2. If you have only a Conductive Hearing Loss (CHL) then routine treatment for a cold will settle the condition.

3. If you have a Sensorineural Hearing Loss ( SSHNL) due to the shingles with distorted hearing, then the treatment window is only 4-6 weeks. SSHNL is described as a hearing loss greater than 20-30 dB (Sensorineural) in 3 contigious speech frequencies. Shingles is usually manifest in times of great stress such as cancer, chemotherapy as in your case. It is a reactivation of a dormant Chickenpox virus from a childhood infection.

4. You may follow up here with your test results for further treatment options.

Regards
Note: Consult an experienced Otolaryngologist / ENT Specialist online for further follow up on ear, nose, and throat issues - Book a Call now.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad
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Answered by
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Dr. Sumit Bhatti

Otolaryngologist / ENT Specialist

Practicing since :1991

Answered : 2686 Questions

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Have Had Cold And Shingles. Have Trouble In Hearing From One Ear. What Can Be Done?

Hi,

Thank you for your query.

1. Get your ear drums examined and get the following hearing tests done:
a. Pure Tone Audiometry (PTA)
b. Tympanometry (Impedance Audiometry)
c. Speech Discrimination Score (SDS) if there is a sensorineural or mixed deafness.

2. If you have only a Conductive Hearing Loss (CHL) then routine treatment for a cold will settle the condition.

3. If you have a Sensorineural Hearing Loss ( SSHNL) due to the shingles with distorted hearing, then the treatment window is only 4-6 weeks. SSHNL is described as a hearing loss greater than 20-30 dB (Sensorineural) in 3 contigious speech frequencies. Shingles is usually manifest in times of great stress such as cancer, chemotherapy as in your case. It is a reactivation of a dormant Chickenpox virus from a childhood infection.

4. You may follow up here with your test results for further treatment options.

Regards