Gavin and Stacey star Larry Lamb, 77, said he is known for "never being ill" - but has recalled a condition he came down with that left him feeling "like [he] was dying". The actor said he has been left with hearing loss after becoming extremely unwell.
The I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here star took a trip to Senegal to publicise the plight of some of the world's poorest children. Shortly after returning home, he came down with a debilitating fever.
Lasting for months, the infection soon reached his ears and as a result caused complete deafness in one of them. Discussing what happened previously, Larry said: "It's been catastrophic. I'm famous for never being ill. But I went into complete physical meltdown.
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BABYCOW)“At one point I felt like I was dying. But the real shock was when I realised I couldn't hear properly.”
The infection and subsequent hearing loss may have been caused by malaria - a mosquito-borne infectious disease that causes fever, tiredness and headaches. Larry continued: “We were in and out within a week. Back home in north London I felt fine, so stopped taking the Malarone pills.
"I'd been told I should take them for eight days after leaving Senegal, but didn't understand why as I was completely well. But about three days later I began to feel ill. It was like the worst hangover I'd ever had.
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"For a few days I had a fever which caused me to sweat and then cool again. I couldn't sleep - I didn't have the strength to do anything.”
After a horrendous stay in hospital where the star “felt as if [he] could die,” Larry became aware of some strange noises in his right ear, the Express reports. “I'd never had any hearing problems and suddenly had really bad tinnitus, as if someone had hit me on the head,” he added.
Following on from treatment, which had failed to cure his hearing loss, Larry was told by doctors to “deal” with the condition, but this was easier said than done as it put strain on his career.
He recalled: “It was hellish. If I was sitting with two or three friends, it was impossible to follow the conversation. I suddenly understood why people with hearing loss can become isolated. It was such a strain that I couldn't always be bothered to keep asking people to repeat themselves. It's easier to tune out, so that's what you do.”
After further tests, Larry was diagnosed with hearing loss in his right ear and mild loss in his left. Doctors explained that the star had suffered the same kind of hearing damage which occurs with ageing, except “more suddenly and profoundly,” leaving him dependent on a hearing aid.
Audiologist Colin Campbell, who treated Lamb at a local Specsavers explained that malarial infection can damage the hair cells in the inner ear - these send electrical signals to the cochlear nerve. And the degree of hearing loss relates to the number of hair cells damaged.
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