mri scan ordered very quick

[joanne8]

Hi i am new to this site, i had an ent appointment 2 weeks ago and i am deaf in my left ear, i also suffer with tintinitis  balance problems and severe virtigo the doc thinks i have a condition which is called positional virtigo which if this is the case i am pleased they can most of the time cure this, my only concern was he ordered a mri and iam scan which i have this friday, it has startled me a bit as i thought it was ordered so quick, do i need to be worried.
thanx for any support given. jo. x

[Stand]

Don't be worried.  I'm in your shoes right now.  The same thing just happened to me.  My appointment is Monday at 7am.  I've spent this whole past week just freaking out because he actually told me that I may have a tumor.  But after spending days worrying, I've learned to just breathe.  I can't change it if I do, and if I don't, I'm hoping for a much better diagnosis such as Meniere's.  So now I'm really looking forward to Monday.  So I can stop worrying!  I'm much better but I still need to watch myself at times.

[joanne8]

Thankyou for your reply i hope it is all ok with you, the doc has not mentioned a tumour ro me, just said i needed a mri scan, if you dont mind what is yr symptons, thankyou jo. good luck

[lori67]

Joanne,

I wouldn't worry too much about the doctor ordering the tests so soon.  It's best to know what you're dealing with right from the beginning.  You wouldn't want him to start treating you for something without knowing exactly what he's treating.  I think he's wise to order the MRI.  Sounds like your doctor has your best interest in mind - and hopefully that will give you some peace of mind.

Deep breath...relax....and I'll be hoping for a good result on Friday.

Lori

[Stand]

My symptoms?  The same as yours.  I went to the local Christian Clinic because I don't have insurance and I've had these issues for ten years (I'm 28 now).  They sent me to the ENT.  After doing tests, he found that I had nerve damage hearing loss (and another form of hearing loss...), unilateral hearing loss and not to mention the pulsatile tinnitus and the typical tinnitus.  What I didn't tell him because I didn't think it was related, were my horrible bouts of balance issues, migraines, facial pain, etc.  But anyway.  He immediately ordered me an MRI with contrast to see what is going on.  He told me that I may POSSIBLY have an Acoustic Neuroma and in his words, "We just need to rule things out.  Or in this case, rule in..."  So I hope he's wrong.  But oddly enough, ANY kind of a diagnosis would be nice at this point.  After having this for ten years, it would be great to have some answers.  So don't fret.  MRIs are normal in this situation.  They just need to know what they're dealing with.  Both of our scans will hopefully come up clean!

[joanne8]

thankyou, i so appreciate the quick action he has taken, it just alarmed me a little, i dont think i have a tumor, i am more concerned about getting my hearing back, it is doing my head in, i can appreciate and relate to any persons suffering with hearing probs and noises in their ears, so annoying. thankyou so much for your conforting words jo. x

[joanne8]

yes you are right i have the same ongoing probs for ten yrs too, i was so bad i was in bed for three weeks with severe loss of balance, anyway good luck for monday please let me know how you get on, my doc did not mention any tumor to me , so i feel kind of lucky that he didnt, just said he needs to rule out other probs before they can treat me. thankyou so much, i really hope your outcome is good thinking off you jo x

[Stand]

Jo, That's great that he didn't.  I kind of wish my doctor hadn't said a thing.  But I was already prepared for it.  I was going to just ignore everything for indefinitely.  But I went to a BBQ at my husband's fellow fireman's house.  This man's wife said something to me and of course, I couldn't hear her.  My kids were also screaming loudly which made it impossible.  So I cupped my good ear and leaned towards her and asked her to repeat herself.  Little did I know that she is a doctor at the ENT office.  She asked me why I did that and I told her that I have no hearing in one ear and the LOUD heartbeating in that ear makes it impossible to hear.  Her face dropped.  She asked me to repeat myself.  Her response was for me to get to a doctor and get there now.  I didn't.  I had to wait for the free clinic to open so that I could see them first because I do not have insurance.  I went and they thought I had an ear infection or allergies so I had to go on their meds for two weeks before they sent me to the ENT office.  And the rest is history.  Hopefully everything is fine.  But I still want to know what is going on.  I have such severe bouts of vertigo, that I will just collapse wherever I am.  Last week I went to Steak & Shake in a larger community a couple of hours from here.  I was fine.  But as soon as I walked in the door, I was hit by dizziness (or whatever it really is) and fell into the wall.  I stood there holding my head until I could walk straight.  I ended up leaning on my husband's shoulder crying silently because the right side of my face felt numb/hurt.  But listen.  Even though the symptoms sound like AN, it may be something very simple.  Like with my parents, my dad has severe tinnitus.  My mom has one-sided hearing loss.  Neither one of them are getting it checked out.  ENTs just like to rule things out before pressing on to getting us hearing aids and so on and so forth.  Hope your scan is clear!

[joanne8]

Bless you, i really hope you are ok, i get the most dizziness when i ly down then when i get back up, but saying that i have had lots of odd experiences with it like cant always walk in a straight line i look drunk (i wish as i dont drink) and they can come on anytime really for no reason, but i do have a lot of medical issues with what i suffer with, so it is hard to know with me, i am at present on a chemo drug as i have recently been dx with autoimmune chronic idiopathic utercuria i have been dx with M.E. for 24yrs so i do get ongoing probs, and at the moment my bloods are not looking good with my kidney functions, are you normally well or do you suffer with other ailments.
kind regards jo. x

[Stand]

Oh goodness me!  You have quite a bit going on.    I have nothing that has been diagnosed.  I do have a lot of neuro pain and I go to a neuro muscular massage therapist for that.  My skin tissue feels inches thick (I'm not overweight) and very numb, even though it hurts really bad.  If you press on my shoulder, I can't feel it.  I also have this problem that goes along with the vertigo.  I have this constant pressure in my skull (when I'm NOT having horrible migraines).  It feels like something is pushing against my head outwards.  I am then hit with this pressure from above.  As if someone is pushing me into the ground.  As I fall, I hear my pulsatile tinnitus increase and I'm kind of incoherent.  So, again I say, I haven't been diagnosed with anything but the ER told me that I need to see a neurologist.

[Jim Scott]

Hi, Joanne - and welcome.

I wouldn't be overly concerned at this point.  Your doctor is simply being professional and prudent in ordering an MRI scan because you do exhibit some symptoms normally - but not exclusively - associated with an acoustic neuroma.  The MRI should either confirm or invalidate that possibility.  Let's hope that the BPPV is not being caused by an acoustic neuroma. Although the causes for BPPV can be elusive, the condition is quite treatable.  Please let us know what the MRI scan shows (if anything).  Thanks.

Jim

[joanne8]

i do get a lot of nerve pain to, about 8yrs ago i started to get severe pain down my left side of the face and ear with numbness and tingling i held my head in my hands for 3 days solid it was so excruiating it felt like i had water or something trickling down behind my ear, it lasted for about 3 weeks all together i think if it hadnt subsided by then i would of killed myself i have never experienced anything so painful in my life, the docs said it was my arthritis in my neck, but i never thought this was so, so i am glad in a way i am having the scan as if anything is wrong they can compare to the scan i had done about 12yrs ago (which gladly came back normal) but i do suffer with a lot of neuro probs but i also know this might be down to the other conditions i have jo. x

[joanne8]

yes thankyou Jim, as you have read i do have a lot going on so i am not to worried, just alarmed how quick the mri came through as here in england the waiting list can be sometime for expensive scans. thankyou, jo x

[Stand]

Well, don't be alarmed.  My wait is going to be a total of 2 weeks.  My doctor actually tried to bump it up to last Wednesday but to no avail.  The ENT office is really trying to get me in quickly.  But I say this, my symptoms DO sound like AN .... but my symptoms can be a list of other issues.  I know you aren't worrying.  But don't worry either that you're getting an MRI quickly.  You may have just been a lucky one to get a cancelation appointment.  Feel blessed that you're getting in quickly!    I surely do!  And I bet anything by Tuesday, this ANA Discussion Forum will no longer hear from me because my MRI will come clean with no tumor.  *breathing in deeply*  I sure hope so!!!!!!!!

[skamper]

Welcome Joanne.
You think your scan came fast, I went to my PCP on a Monday for some numbness in my lip that had seemed to spread down to my chin.  They sent me straight to the MRI place two hours later.  I got the call the next morning at work at 8:30, the PCP telling me I had a tumor, benign, but a tumor still the same.  I then made the neurosureon appt, longest two week wait in my life.  Then the ENT appt about a month after that.  If you do have an AN, you have come to perfect place.  Everyone here helped me get through everything and helped me stay sane.  I am now 5 months post op and am doing good. 
It still may be something else completely different that you have, just keep your mind occupied with happy thoughts until the scan.  Keep us posted though, we will all be waiting for good results.  I will say a prayer for you.
Susan