It’s very common for individuals to experience tinnitus. Tinnitus can become so overwhelming that it becomes a burden to live with for about 20 million individuals around the world. This does not even reference the more common types of tinnitus, which for most people can come and go without causing a huge impact on their quality of life.
When you hear noises in your ears that don’t have an outside source and no one else can hear them, that’s tinnitus. This might be a ringing in the ears or a buzzing sound you can’t shake. Tinnitus is often associated with hearing loss, but that doesn’t mean that one condition will automatically result in the other.
As a matter of fact, tinnitus comes in numerous forms. Treating these varieties of tinnitus will call for different approaches.
Tinnitus – exactly what is it?
Exactly what is tinnitus and how is it caused? The first thing to recognize is that tinnitus comes in numerous types and causes. The assorted causes of tinnitus will present with similar symptoms. But it’s still crucial to identify the cause in order to effectively treat the symptoms.
In some cases, concussions or other traumatic brain injuries or neurological issues can be the cause. In other instances, tinnitus may result from age-related hearing loss. The following are some other potential causes:
- Neurological tinnitus: Issues with the ear aren’t always the cause of tinnitus. Sometimes, the root cause lies within the brain. Neurological tinnitus is a result of injury to or problems with your baseline neurological functions. This means that the normal communication between your brain and ears isn’t functioning correctly. As a result, a phantom sound is heard which isn’t actually there. A stroke, concussion, or brain injury can all be the root sources of tinnitus, as well as others. In some instances, neurological tinnitus may resolve as the brain heals. For others, it could be permanent.
- Subjective tinnitus: With subjective tinnitus, the sound you’re hearing is phantom and doesn’t objectively exist and no one else can hear it. This type of tinnitus comprises many other forms of tinnitus also. For example, neurological tinnitus can also be subjective tinnitus. Subjective tinnitus can present as many different sound types, including ringing, buzzing, squeals, whistles, roars, and others.
- Objective tinnitus: With objective tinnitus, you’re hearing a real, verifiable, objective sound. Objective tinnitus is not quite as common as subjective tinnitus, but it still occurs. Typically, this means you’re dealing with something called pulsatile tinnitus, which happens when you’re hearing your heartbeat or circulatory system. For those with objective tinnitus, that pulsing sound typically seems louder than it should.
- Somatic tinnitus: Tinnitus sounds are frequently quite constant for many individuals coping with them. Both objective and subjective tinnitus have this attribute. With somatic tinnitus though, things are a bit different. This type of tinnitus becomes more intense when you move around. Normally, somatic tinnitus will cause the symptoms to become more intense when you move your head or neck.
The majority of these types of tinnitus aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, you may have neurological tinnitus and subjective tinnitus. In order for us to formulate a treatment plan, we will first need to identify the root cause of your tinnitus.
Finding tinnitus assistance
You probably won’t have to take any particular action if your tinnitus symptoms are intermittent. But your quality of life can be significantly impacted if your tinnitus symptoms are rather constant or keep returning. When that happens, your best plan to get some relief is to contact us for a consultation.
We have a number of different tinnitus management strategies we may try depending on the underlying cause of your symptoms. A few of these techniques can decrease the intensity of your symptoms making them less apparent. We may also use masking techniques to hide your symptoms.
Tinnitus can’t generally be cured, but it can be effectively managed. We will work with you to formulate treatments that work for your symptoms. That way, you can more easily ignore the buzzing or ringing in your ears, and get back to the life you enjoy.
