Tinnitus and Darker Floaters/Vision Problems

[EnglishTeacher1]

I'm a 33 year-old female. 4 weeks ago, I started having ringing in my left ear. Not long after this, I also started noticing two darker floaters that were darting around in my vision. I've had floaters before, but they were always clear or "bubbly" looking. These are different since they are round-ish and darker (but definitely floaters since they move when my eyes move). Also they sometimes appear as if they are on top of one another or side-by-side as they dart around. I also noticed that my vision seemed blurrier and strained (especially evenings or indoors) and dimmer than usual. And my eyes have felt a bit burning lately (not sure if that's related).

I went to an ENT and neurologist. ENT ordered an audiological screening and brainstem scan. They were both normal. The neurologist ordered an MRI w/contrast of the brain and audiological canal and a ton of blood work. MRI was completely normal. Bloodwork turned up slightly low potassium, high cholesterol and exposure to Epstein-Barr.

I went to an ophthalmologist about the eye issues (mentioned the tinnitus). He did a complete eye exam, dilated the pupils, looked at the optic nerve and retina and did a vision field test. He said that the retina looked fine (no tears or detachment) and the optic nerve was fine. I scored 100% on the vision field test. I have astygmatism in the left eye. He wrote me a prescription for glasses. He said that if my MRI showed any problems with anything between the optic nerve and the brain, then let him know, but otherwise, I was all clear unless I started seeing flashes or got a sudden "shower" of floaters (I haven't) and to stop freaking out. The MRI was normal.

These floaters are really driving me crazy. Is there ANYTHING else I should be worried about? Or did the tests that the ophthalmologist did pretty much rule out everything serious and I'll just have to learn to deal with these new darker floaters and blurry vision/eye strain? P.S. Glasses haven't come in yet.

[Michael J Kutryb, MD]

It sounds like you had a very thorough exam with the ophthalmologist.  The floaters are annoying, I understand but unfortunately, there is not much that can be done for them.  They usually improve over time and will bother you much less.  I still think it is important to have a follow up exam in about a month since you are worried and the floaters seem to be fairly new.  Other than that, it sounds like your eyes are in fairly good shape and there is not much to worry about.  The ear problems are another story, however.

MJK MD

[EnglishTeacher1]

Forgot to mention that the opthalmologist also did a glaucoma test and it was normal as well.

[rmv80]

Wow, I have the exact same series of events. I am a 28 yo male and have been through the ringer with MRI's, bloodwork, etc...

Before your tinnitus & floaters, have you had any other symptoms? Any headaches, tingling in extremities?

I'd suggest going for a vitamin panel workup as well as tests for systemic inflammation (Sjogrens's, Lupus, or any other connective tissue disorder), as inflammation can cause tinnitus and liquefaction in the vitreous.

I am still trying to get to the bottom of my problems, but I have had no luck yet. My floaters are getting worse and much more noticeable. At this point MS, Connective Tissue disorders, and anything that would show up in "normal" bloodwork have been ruled out.

I wish you all the best, please update with any other symptoms.

[rmv80]

Also forgot to mention I have high cholesterol and have Epstein-Barr as well. About same time difference in symptoms too. Noticed floaters & vision problems about 1 month after tinnitus started up.

[rmv80]

And one more... :)

http://floatertalk.yuku.com/topic/1771/t/floaters-and-auditory-problems.html

[EnglishTeacher1]

Wow. Thanks for the info. and understanding! It's been so frustrating, and I feel like I'm never going to get to the bottom of this. It just seems like there's something they have to be missing.

I think I could deal with the tinnitus, but the floaters are really scaring me. My opthalmologist said that my eyes looked fine, and that sometimes, when one part of our body starts giving us trouble, we start looking for or noticing other things.

Still, from everything I've read online, darker floaters seem to be bad news, and I've never had them before. I just hope it's not something more serious. I'm guessing if it was something would have looked abnormal. Still, I'm debating whether I should start getting 2nd opinions or not, or if I'm just overreacting.

As far as other symptoms, I remember feeling super tired and achy the weekend before, and my throat was a little scratchy, so I thought I was starting to come down with something, but then it never happened. That's really about it.

My arms feel like pin cushions from all the blood they've drawn. They've ruled out MS, lupus, herpes (haha), hepatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, lyme disease, thyroid, etc. I'll check into the systemic inflammation tests.

In the meantime, I'm still worried about my eyes.....

[rmv80]

I say go for a second opinion if you have any doubt in your mind. It'll either help ease your mind or confirm any original diagnosis. To be honest, I've been to about 4 retina specialists and 2 general opthamologists and they all have differing answers. Good news is none have said anything majorly bad, but I got the same "keep an eye out for a shower of floaters, curtain, etc..." speech that unfortunately a lot of people on here have heard.

I have the same feeling about the tinnitus vs floaters. The tinnitus is "liveable" but the floaters are very worrying because you can't escape them. Road noise, music, the TV can all help mask tinnitus, but the floaters you can't avoid if you're outside or in a brightly lit room. What's really concerning is that they are progressively getting more noticeable and no one seems to really care at this point because there isn't a major problem for them to fix.

[EnglishTeacher1]

I hear you. As I mentioned, my eyes have also seemed kinda blurry/strained and sometimes it feels like they're burning (like last night and this morning). Not sure if that could be some kind of unrelated irritation or not.

After my appointment I had googled my symptoms online and stumbled upon uveitis. I hadn't asked about it since I didn't know about it until afterwards, but now I'm getting more and more concerned about that since this seems to meet at least some of the symptoms (darker floaters, blurry vision, some burning).

I'm guessing that the opthalmologist would've ruled this out with the tests, though....? He said everything looked fine. Not sure if I should go back and ask or if I'll just be a pest if I do that. Sigh.

Did they check you for this as well?

[EnglishTeacher1]

Thank you SO MUCH, Dr. Kutryb. I really appreciate your feedback. I'd been worried since the floaters are darker plus my eyes have been burning a bit and blurry/strained. Reassuring to know that the exam seemed thorough and things are probably ok. I'll give my new glasses a try and also follow up with the doc in a month.

Yes, the tinnitus is very annoying and I'm still troubleshooting all of that with the neurologist, ENT and my GP. They've all concluded so far that that one just might remain a mystery and that I'll have to learn to deal with it.

Again, thank you so much for replying! You guys provide a great service here.

[rmv80]

I got back some hair sample results last night, and I have a very low potassium level.

[EnglishTeacher1]

Interesting! Hmmm......There HAS to be something to this.....

By the way, just curious but do you have any pre-existing conditions? I've been allergic to dust for my entire life (and on some form of allergy meds since age 10). I also have pretty bad TMJ (oddly enough, on the opposite side from the tinnitus), migraines (occasionally w/the visual aura), and I also get kidney stones. These started around five years ago. They're calcium stones, and I usually get 1-2 per year (my sis gets them as well).

I was also sort of/maybe diagnosed w/a skin condition about 1 1/2 years ago called hydradenitis suprative that causes cysts to form and sometimes get infected. That ones a bit iffy, though, because I only had one instance of it and then (knock on wood) it hasn't re-occurred, so the dermatologist said it might have just been some kind of skin infection I picked up from my stint substitute teaching in the city schools.

The only meds I've been on are zytec-d for allergies and mucinex (as needed for stuffiness).

Anyways, just curious if there's any other overlapping of symptoms/conditions.