Tinnitus: Ringing in the Ears

28 de agosto de 2023

3 min de lectura

Tinnitus or ringing in the ears is a medical term for hearing noises in the ear when there is no outside noise source. Tinnitus is a common problem in about 15 to 20 % of people and is mainly seen in older adults.

Tinnitus usually occurs because of an underlying condition like an ear injury, age-related hearing loss, or a problem with the circulatory system.

What are the symptoms of tinnitus?

Tinnitus is often described as ringing in the ears even when no external sound source is present. Some people experience subjective tinnitus, where the noise can appear as a low roar to a high-pitched squeal heard in one or both ears.

You may experience tinnitus constantly, or it may come and go. The sound heard is often described as:

Humming
Hissing
Roaring
Buzzing
Clicking

In rare cases, tinnitus can occur as a rhythmic whooshing or pulsing sound in tune with the heartbeat, a condition called pulsatile tinnitus.

What causes tinnitus?

Even though the exact cause of tinnitus is unknown, it can happen for one or more of the following reasons.

Hearing loss: Hearing loss because of aging or exposure to loud noise can cause tinnitus.
Head or neck injury: Certain head and neck injuries can affect the inner ear, brain, or hearing nerves causing tinnitus.
Medications: Medicines like cancer drugs, antibiotics, diuretics, and antidepressants can cause tinnitus.
Noise exposure: People who regularly experience loud noise can develop tinnitus symptoms.
Ear infection or ear canal blockage: A blockage in the ear canal because of infection, earwax buildup, foreign materials, or dirt can cause tinnitus.

Tinnitus can happen because of other less common reasons like:

Muscle spasms in the inner ear: Muscles in the inner ear can go into spasms because of neurological diseases or multiple sclerosis, causing tinnitus, hearing loss, or a feeling of fullness in the ears.
Meniere’s disease: Tinnitus can indicate an early Meniere’s disease, an ear disorder due to the abnormal inner ear fluid pressure buildup.
Eustachian tube dysfunction: A condition where the tube connecting your middle ear to the throat stays expanded, causing a feeling of fullness in the ears.
Ear bone changes: The stiffening of bones in the middle ear can affect hearing, causing tinnitus.
Acoustic neuroma or other head and brain disorders: Head and brain tumors like acoustic neuroma, a benign tumor that develops in the nerve that runs from the brain to the inner ear, can cause tinnitus.
Other chronic conditions: Conditions like diabetes, migraines, thyroid issues, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus are associated with tinnitus.

Pulsatile tinnitus happens when you hear blood rushing through arteries and veins in tune with your pulse. The condition can occur due to anemia (reduced red blood cells in the blood) or atherosclerosis (blocked arteries).

How is tinnitus diagnosed?

Where you have tinnitus symptoms, your doctor will check your ear for ear wax buildup or any infection that may block your ear canal. They will also look at your medical history to rule out other complications.

Your doctor may refer you to an otolaryngologist ( an ENT physician) to examine your head, neck, and ear. You may need to visit an audiologist who can evaluate your tinnitus symptoms.

Where pulsatile tinnitus is suspected, your ENT physician may order imaging tests like MRI(magnetic resonance imaging), CT ( Computed tomography) scans, or ultrasound to reveal if a structural issue or an underlying medical condition is causing tinnitus symptoms.

Treatments for tinnitus

Where tinnitus occurs because of an underlying physiological cause like ear infection or ear wax buildup, treating the problem can resolve the issue. For many people, tinnitus can continue for months and years. The doctor may need to offer treatments to reduce the condition's impact in the following ways.

Sound therapies

Sound therapies can mask the tinnitus noise to reduce its impact, distracting you. Doctors use devices like hearing aids, wearable sound generators, and tabletop and smartphone sound generators to mask tinnitus noises.

Behavioral therapies

Doctors can offer counseling to help people manage their tinnitus symptoms better. Cognitive behavioral therapies can help patients focus on the positive things to reduce the impact of tinnitus. Tinnitus retraining therapy is sometimes provided to help the brain reclassify tinnitus sounds as normal.

Sources:

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En esta página

What are the symptoms of tinnitus?

What causes tinnitus?

How is tinnitus diagnosed?

Treatments for tinnitus

Sound therapies

Behavioral therapies

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