Ear, Nose and Throat Health

Headaches after climax have been described over the years and are felt related to changes in the size of blood vessels after sex. Vertigo is more unusual and might suggest a problem with the inner ear system; a... continue reading  about  For the first time in my life I experience vertigo after climaxing. Why is that?

A couple of possible answers come to mind. First, there is a large source of blood flow in your head close to the bottom of your ear canal. The carotid artery is large and can sometimes produce a pounding or he... continue reading  about  What would cause a muffled thumping sound in my left ear (almost like hearing a heart beat)? This sound is not in the right ear, only the left. It doesn't happen all the time and there is no hearing loss.

Many articles have been written about the connection between decreased blood flow from cardiovascular disease and hearing loss. The inner ear is very small, and changes in blood flow in the body can cause the r... continue reading  about  I recently read that hearing loss is more common in people with heart disease or those who've had a heart attack. Why would this be?

Noises in the ear, whether it be thumping, ringing, buzzing, roaring or any other unusual sound not explained by outside sounds, are called tinnitus. Tinnitus can be constant, intermittent, high or low pitched,... continue reading  about  I have a thumping sound in my left ear. The sound is rapid and irregular, and not synced with my pulse. It started four days ago at night. Today for first time I noticed sounds like tapping gently on a speaker cone. It doesn't seem to affect hearing.

Usually when someone has a “seasonal” allergy, it means springtime symptoms caused by pollen. Although pollen allergy certainly can cause nasal, eye or asthma symptoms, it rarely would cause a rash ... continue reading  about  I have a seasonal reoccurring rash. Can this be related to allergies?

I read several studies that seem to link increased risk of hearing loss to use of NSAIDS (ibuprofen is an NSAID). It is important to understand that there is an increase RISK of hearing loss in both women and m... continue reading  about  I take ibuprofen daily for back problems, but I read recently that sometimes it can cause hearing loss. Is this true, and how much would you need to take to cause this to happen?

Swimmer's ear is a term commonly used to describe an infection of the ear canal. People who repeatedly wet the ear canal (swimming, surfing, scuba diving) can develop persistent dampness that allows either bact... continue reading  about  What is "swimmer's ear" and what is the best way to deal with it?

When using an MP3 player, the recommendation is to keep the volume at one half the scale, or less. Specifically, on an I-Pod device, I counsel my patients and family members to keep the volume no more than half... continue reading  about  I use ear buds with my MP3 player and wondered what volume of sound is safe. Can loud music cause hearing loss?

Hearing loss is often the main culprit with concerns about communication difficulties. Communication is the ability to hear, listen and respond to others appropriately. In order to hear, the auditory system (ou... continue reading  about  It's hard for me to follow a conversation when two or more people talk at once. I'm a 48-year-old woman who has had no hearing problems in the past. Should I be concerned?