Where are you having this done? I think we just have to research all options and go with what's best for us.

I have had 2 doctors recommend a VNS since I still have a fair amount of hearing left. I saw a doctor in AZ who is also a Meniere's specialist and he said he will try me on Betahistine and if that doesn't work my last option is VNS. I have 4 young kids and a husband in the military who deploys. When we get back to Florida I'm going to contact my Meniere's doc there to find out more info about proceeding with the surgery. I am going to give the medicine 2 weeks to work, which is what the doc recommended, but if not he said the sooner I have it done the better since I am young (39) and my quality of life is kind of sucky right now. It's a difficult option to select but if you know you have a very good surgeon your outcome will hopefully be what you are hoping for. I have found a couple of stories on You Tube and various websites in like Australia that people have had the surgery with successful results. I am not sure what CI is so I can't offer much in regards to that! Best wishes and God Bless
Leslie

If you search previous discussions another member had a labrynthectomy in late November and she has posted her results on it!

I had the laby surgery in November and am very happy with it. It is not the nightmare that so many said it would be. The surgery went very well and they make you very comfortable following surgery (medications). I began walking using a walker at first, but am now walking without it. My balance is not perfect, but I can do almost everything I used to do around the house. I get tired easily because maintaining balance is hard work! LOL (We take balance for granted). I will be starting vestibular rehab therapy in a few weeks and I'm sure that will be a big help to me as well. For me, the labyrinthectomy was the right way to go. I have no hesitation in recommending this procedure. Since I had already lost nearly all hearing in my left ear, the loss of hearing was not even that noticeable to me. I am now totally deaf in that ear. I had some vision problems at first, but some of that was caused by the pain med used the first week or two. My balance is now good enough to walk without the walker, I can go into restaurants and grocery stores without problems. I still don't drive, but since my hubby is retired, he does most of our driving anyway. I am 67 y/o and am doing great. I hope this helps to relieve you of anxieties about this procedure. The greatest benefit is no more vertigo! I was having frequent, violent attacks of vertigo and it is such a relief to now be vertigo free!

I got on Betahistine about two weeks ago and have not come close to having any attacks since. Keeping my fingers crossed!
Sam

I could have probably added a little bit of my story to it to clear this up. I am 21 years old and have "drop attacks". I have episodes 4-5 times a week. I cannot function like this. I started with the dieuretic and low salt diet. No good. Then I had a tube put in my ear. No good. Then i tried injections of gentamicin which should have worked after about 4 injections. I am now up to 10 injections with no relief. So I am flying to a specialist doctor in New York to further pursue surgery. Between the disease and the gent I now have profound hearing loss in my affected ear. From these gent shots I also had to go to vestibular rehab to relearn balance because my system was damaged from the gent. I sort of wonder if I will have the same feeling that was after this surgery? It honestly felt like I was drunk ha, just very off balance, trippy, always stumbling. But also very very nauseous and dizzy until after I did some rehab.

A CI is a cochlear implant to answer leslie.

I'm glad your Betahistine is working Sam! Thats so great to hear!

Sounds like you've had a very rough ride with MD. Since the Gent injections didn't do the job for you, the surgery should. Because you are young and I'm not (Ha!) , you should breeze through the recovery process following surgery. My neurotoloigist told me it would take me longer because of my age. (Nice to know, huh?) Anyway, keep us updated on things. I am still pleased with my progress and am ready to get into VRT. I've been able to do most of my own cooking, laundry and light housekeeping, so I think that is good progress for the first month after the laby surgery. Also of note, the tinnitus is way less than before the surgery. Another bonus! It is so good to free of vertigo! And those drop attacks will also be gone! I had only a couple of those and didn't want anymore. My surgery was done in the Atlanta area and I was in the hospital only 2 days. Not bad, huh? Best wishes to you and prayers for a successful surgical procedure. ~Diann~

Diann
I am so happy to hear you are continuing to do better! I had a 2nd opinion while I was in Phoenix and the neurotologist told me mine was a more severe case with having attacks nearly daily and over 20 drop attacks. He, like my current Florida doctor, both recommend VNS since I still have some hearing left. He did say I will lose all my hearing and I just need to be prepared for that. The more attacks I have the worse my hearing and balance seem to be getting. Since I am still youngish the sooner the surgery the easier the recovery

Leslie, yes, being younger enables you to bounce back more quickly! I'm 67 y/o so I'm sure it will be spring before I can do all the things I want to do. But, I'm still pleased with the outcome, even now.

If you are going to get the surgery done and are also thinking that a CI maybe the next move, I would advise you to check with your insurance company first. I know in cases like private insurance they more than likely will not cover it. In Medicare, they will as long as you are deaf in one ear and down to 20% (or thereabout) in the other ear. In my case I opted for a cochlear Baha. I had problems with site infections with it and had to stop. Georgia had good results with her surgery and will improve with PR. Just check out the CI, another issue with the Baha was sound quality was poor like listing to AM radio. CI is a great product but dose not compare like regular hearing. It all needs further investigating to get all the facts.

God bless, its all about your level of expectation, non of this is reversible.

Rich

Thank you for everyone's advice. It was mentioned to me that getting the CI at the same time as the surgery could be an option. And I know people that have gotten a CI AFTER they recovered from the surgery but I guess I wanted to see if anyone else has gotten it at the same time. Just to clarify that, it means that while they are removing the labyrinth they also implant the CI and use the same incision etc.

Diann, if you don't mind me asking, what type of incision do you have? Meaning is it very large and visible and will leave a bad scar? Or is it relatively small? I just ask because I know people who have had either the surgery OR a CI but more than 15 years ago. Their scars are quite large (maybe between 7-10 inches curved) and do stand out a bit. I think because surgery is more advanced now maybe it is different?

The incision is made in the crease behind the ear. It runs from the top of the ear to the bottom. Mine has healed up completely and there is no visible scar. The stitches are the absorbable kind, so no need to worry about having stitches removed. My surgery was done through the mastoid and I believe you said yours will be also. I've had no problems.

I agree with with Moonpie about doing your homework on the CI. From what I've read it does not give anywhere near normal hearing. There is another surgical option I saw on another forum. I don't remember what it is called, but I will try to find it and get back to you with that information, just for comparison with the CI.

Here is a link about the surgical procedure known as BAHA - It is a bone anchored hearing aid. I personally don't know anything about it and have read comments from one person who had it done. She is a school teacher and she said it works well for her. Just another option to consider.

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1604065-overview

Are you able to wear hearing aids after this surgery, meaning still able to hear with them? I'm not sure if you have them. I wear them currently right now on both sides. But I was under the impression after this surgery hearing aids will no longer work. I know about both the CI and BAHA so I know those are different but just traditional hearing aids.

The hearing in my right ear is excellent. I had only one hearing aid in the left ear. Because my hearing was so poor, the hearing aid was not benefiting me and I continued to lose hearing. Post laby surgery, I am now totally deaf in the left ear. The right ear compensates well enough that I most likely won't opt for any surgical hearing systems. Besides, at my age, most of my friends have hearing problems anyway! LOL Keep seeking information and exploring every option before you have the surgery done. You need to be comfortable with the choices you make. I know I am very happy with the laby surgery. Hugs & Prayers to you as you continue to seek answers.