New doc and a diagnosis

What a difference a new doc makes.     A younger guy who isn't just phoning it in.  

He looked at my tests from the first doc and a new hearing test his office did and his immediate diagnosis is Menieres disease.

He spent 30 minutes with me explaining everything.  Said my hearing loss pattern is typical of Menieres.  There is no cure but it is treatable with diuretics and salt restriction and we can stop any further degradation of my hearing by treating it.   Kicked up the dose on the diuretic I'm already taking.   He said the goal is to stop the vertigo from happening rather than treating it with meclizine.  each episode of vertigo is a few more cells dying permanently.   Either it will stabilize or will continue until all the vestibular cells are all gone, and then the symptoms will cease.  right now, I am at 70%.  

I asked him about an auto-immune component to this and he denied it.  Said it was "glaucoma of the ear" where the pressure inside the hearing and balance organs is too high-for whatever reason.   The science isn't clear about what causes it. 

As you said before, at least it's not cancer.       If I can stabilize where I am now, then I can stop worrying so much about the future. 

alan