Our clinic has state of the art equipment for otologic examination and management.
Medical and surgical ear infection treatments
Stapedotomy
Cochlear implant surgery
Labyrinthectomy
Endolymphatic sac decompression
Lateral skull base surgery
Dizziness assessment
Vestibular management
Facial nerve management
Dizziness and the Inner Ear
Dizziness is a common symptom that can be caused my many conditions. Often, it maybe related to diseases of the inner ear. The term 'dizziness' can mean different things to different people. In general, it can be subdivided in vertigo, imbalance and lightheadedness. The presence of vertigo with nausea point to the inner ear as the likely cause of the problem. The 3 most common causes are Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, Acute Vestibulopathy and Meniere's.
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is caused by loose otoliths floating in the wrong place of the inner ear. It can occur spontaneously, from head trauma or from inner ear infections. Typically, the presentation is of short spells of vertigo with head position change.
Acute vestibulopathy is thought to be caused by a viral attack on the balance nerve. It occurs suddenly with severe spinning and nausea lasting for hours to days. It may take several days to resolve the dizziness.
Meniere's disease is a inner ear problem due to a swollen endolymphatic system. It presents with tinnitus, hearing loss and vertigo together. Typically, there may have been previous attacks as the natural history is that the attacks are intermittant.
The Dizziness Clinic is a specialised clinic where patients with difficult dizziness symptoms can be evaluated and sent for further investigations. The management options include exercise, medication and surgical intervention for severe cases.
Introduction to Tinnitus
Tinnitus is a subjective sound in one’s ear. Being subjective, it is usually only heard by the patient. It is commonly described as ringing, buzzing, roaring, whooshing or humming. While you may enjoy these sounds in nature, they're no fun when they're coming from inside your own head.
Tinnitus is common. Millions of people have some degree of tinnitus. Majority are minor fleeting tinnitus that last for a few seconds or minutes. But for others, the ringing in their ears is distressing enough for them to seek medical help.
Tinnitus isn't a disease but is a symptom that can be caused by a number of medical conditions. It may be the result of age-related hearing loss or ear injury, or it may be an indication of a disease of your circulatory system.
When to seek medical advice
Most cases of tinnitus aren't harmful. However, if tinnitus persists or gets worse or the tinnitus is affecting your rest, it might be wise to seek medical attention. Tinnitus with associated hearing loss or dizziness might have to be evaluated as it might be caused by serious inner ear diseases. We might be able to suggest treatments that might reduce the noise and techniques to help you better cope with the noise.
What can we do?
Paramount in managing this condition is to determine the diagnosis and ascertain if there is any treatable condition that might be aggravating the tinnitus.
You will usually undergo:
1. A thorough history and physical examination
2. A series of audiological tests to assist us in determining the cause and impact of tinnitus
3. Imaging and blood tests if deemed necessary
Apart from treating any treatable condition causing tinnitus, we also have tinnitus counseling clinics to teach you steps you can take every day to reduce the severity of the noise or to better cope with the noise. Patients will hearing loss causing tinnitus can also be evaluated in our audiological clinic on the benefit of hearing aids in reducing the tinnitus. Some patients might benefit from the use of medications in reducing the tinnitus and out ENT doctors will be able to advice you on that.
For chronic tinnitus sufferers, we are the first hospital in Singapore to bring in a form of acoustic stimulation therapy called Neuromonics. This treatment first introduced in Australia and has been shown to be very successful in ‘desensitising’ patients towards their tinnitus. The therapy consists of sound stimulation coupled with counseling and it is a six-month program.
Visit our NUH Website