After four agonizing years of a constant buzzing synchronized with every heartbeat, a woman has finally found silence—thanks to a groundbreaking surgery performed for the first time at Artemis Hospital, Gurugram.
The patient, who had been forced to consider giving up her career due to the debilitating noise, underwent a novel surgery, sigmoid sinus resurfacing surgery—a rare and technically challenging procedure that offered immediate and complete relief from her pulsatile tinnitus.
When Hope Seems Lost
For four years, the patient heard an unrelenting, rhythmic buzzing in her ear—every single heartbeat amplified into an auditory nightmare. She consulted multiple ENT specialists and neurologists across the country. She tried various treatments. Nothing worked. Not even partially.
"Imagine hearing your heartbeat as a loud buzz, 24 hours a day, for four years. You can't sleep. You can't concentrate. You can't work. Many patients told us they reached a point where they felt nothing could be done," said Dr. Trisha Srivastava, Consultant ENT Surgeon at Artemis Hospital, who led the surgical team.
Finding the Hidden Culprit
Dr. Srivastava,conducted an exhaustive evaluation including high-resolution CT scans and specialized imaging. What emerged was a diagnosis often missed on routine scans: a 1-centimeter defect in the bony wall covering the sigmoid sinus—a major blood vessel in the skull.
This rare condition, called sigmoid sinus dehiscence, creates turbulent blood flow that transmits directly to the inner ear as pulsatile tinnitus. "The defect is subtle and requires a trained eye to detect. Many patients with this condition go undiagnosed for years," Dr. Srivastava explained.
A Three-Hour Surgery, A Lifetime of Relief
On the day of surgery, the team performed the intricate sigmoid sinus resurfacing procedure—a surgery so rare that only one prior documented case exists in Indian medical literature until now. The three-hour operation involved precisely exposing the area, then reconstructing the defective bony wall using the patient's own tissue combined with bone cement to restore normal anatomy and blood flow dynamics.
The proximity to major venous channels made the procedure high-risk, but meticulous planning and surgical precision ensured success."She opened her eyes and the first thing she said was, 'It's gone. The noise is completely gone,'" recalled Dr. Srivastava. "The patient and her family broke down in tears—tears of relief after years of suffering."
A Message of Hope for Thousands
Pulsatile tinnitus affects thousands of Indians, many of whom are told to "learn to live with it.” The usual practice is to rule out vascular tumors and if not found nothing much is offered. This surgical success of the new procedure shatters that myth.
"This surgery proves that pulsatile tinnitus is not something patients must endure forever," Dr. Srivastava emphasized. "With proper evaluation and specialized expertise, even uncommon causes can be identified and treated. This gives hope to countless people suffering silently across the country."
The lack of published cases of sigmoid sinus resurfacing in India highlights a critical awareness gap in the medical community. Dr. Srivastava noted, "Many ENT surgeons may not be familiar with this procedure because it's so rarely documented in Indian literature. We could only find one case done prior at SGPGI Lucknow. This case should encourage more awareness amongst doctors and patients."
If you or someone you know suffers from pulsatile tinnitus, specialized evaluation may reveal treatable causes. This surgery proves that hope exists—even when all other options seem exhausted.
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