Post by kemper on Jun 28, 2004 19:42:41 GMT -5
Perhaps some of you are aware of a surgical procedure to treat stapedial myoclonus. It basically involves going into the ear via an inscision around the eardrum and severing the tendons of the stapedial muscle. Effectively, this is the elimination and disabling of the muscle that is having spasms, which sounds like it ought to work, and in the opinion of my otologist, would have a 90% chance of being successful. I was wondering if there is anyone who has had this procedure done and could testify as to the results. My doctor has done this procedure to patients, although not specifically for stapedial myoclonus.
The thought if having my ear ailment gone for good sounds really pleasing to me, but the side affects and the risks involved also make me apprehensive. The stapedial muscle is there to provide protection to the rest of your inner ear from unexpected loud sounds. If the muscle is eliminated, my ear could suffer permanent damage from a freak exposure to a loud noise. I take good care to wear hearing protection when I know I will be in a noisy environment, but I can't account for the unexpected. A good example of this is the airbag system in my vehicle. The warning label indicates that "temporary" hearing loss may result from airbag deployment, probably due to the noise of the explosive that inflates the bag. I would bet that the hearing loss would be permanant in an ear that lacks protection from the stapedial muscle.
Other issues and risks are that my hearing could be altered after the procedure. That is a big issue for me, because my hearing is vital to my career as a musician and audio engineer. Of course, my hearing in my right ear is already being altered by the symptoms of S.M.
What also bothers me about this procedure is that is doesn't seem to be starting at the root of the problem. Now I don't consider myself too eruditious about physiology (biology was in fact one of my worst subjects) but the mechanism that causes my myoclonus seems to work like this:
1) noise is generated and recieved by ear
2) ear processes sound and relays signal to brain
3) brain processes signal and sends signal to stapedial muscle
4) stapedial muscle reacts, generating audible sound
I don't think there is anything wrong with my stapedial muscle. It obviously works quite well, and has probably gotten bigger with all the excersise it has been doing. The problem as I see it lies in the brain, which generates a bad nerve impulse based on what the ears are sending it as far as a noise profile. While cutting the muscle could very well eliminate the symptom, I don't think it is the best way to address the problem.
Thing is, I'm coming close to exhausting all options for dealing with this, and the surgery would be my final option.
Thoughts and comments are appreciated, and take care everyone..
Kemper
The thought if having my ear ailment gone for good sounds really pleasing to me, but the side affects and the risks involved also make me apprehensive. The stapedial muscle is there to provide protection to the rest of your inner ear from unexpected loud sounds. If the muscle is eliminated, my ear could suffer permanent damage from a freak exposure to a loud noise. I take good care to wear hearing protection when I know I will be in a noisy environment, but I can't account for the unexpected. A good example of this is the airbag system in my vehicle. The warning label indicates that "temporary" hearing loss may result from airbag deployment, probably due to the noise of the explosive that inflates the bag. I would bet that the hearing loss would be permanant in an ear that lacks protection from the stapedial muscle.
Other issues and risks are that my hearing could be altered after the procedure. That is a big issue for me, because my hearing is vital to my career as a musician and audio engineer. Of course, my hearing in my right ear is already being altered by the symptoms of S.M.
What also bothers me about this procedure is that is doesn't seem to be starting at the root of the problem. Now I don't consider myself too eruditious about physiology (biology was in fact one of my worst subjects) but the mechanism that causes my myoclonus seems to work like this:
1) noise is generated and recieved by ear
2) ear processes sound and relays signal to brain
3) brain processes signal and sends signal to stapedial muscle
4) stapedial muscle reacts, generating audible sound
I don't think there is anything wrong with my stapedial muscle. It obviously works quite well, and has probably gotten bigger with all the excersise it has been doing. The problem as I see it lies in the brain, which generates a bad nerve impulse based on what the ears are sending it as far as a noise profile. While cutting the muscle could very well eliminate the symptom, I don't think it is the best way to address the problem.
Thing is, I'm coming close to exhausting all options for dealing with this, and the surgery would be my final option.
Thoughts and comments are appreciated, and take care everyone..
Kemper