Tinnitus is an exceptionally common medical condition. Tinnitus can become so extreme that it becomes a burden to live with for about 20 million individuals worldwide. And there are also more prevalent presentations of tinnitus which are a lot more mild and sporadic and are also easier to deal with.
Tinnitus happens when you hear a phantom noise, when you’re hearing a sound that nobody else can hear. It could manifest as a persistent buzzing or ringing in the ears. Tinnitus is frequently associated with hearing loss, but that doesn’t mean that one condition will immediately lead to the other.
In fact, there are a considerable variety of forms of tinnitus. And each one will require a different approach to treatment.
Tinnitus – exactly what is it?
Exactly what is tinnitus and how is it caused? The first thing to understand is that tinnitus comes in several types and causes. The assorted causes of tinnitus will manifest with similar symptoms. But it’s still crucial to determine the cause in order to successfully manage the symptoms.
For some people, tinnitus is the outcome of a neurological issue, such as a traumatic brain injury or a concussion. In other circumstances, tinnitus may result from age-related hearing loss. Here are a few of the most common types of tinnitus:
- Neurological tinnitus: Problems with the ear are not always the cause of tinnitus. The brain itself can sometimes be the source. If your baseline neurological functions are impaired by injury it can activate neurological tinnitus. In other words, something has gone wrong with the typical ways that your brain and ear interact. As a result, a phantom noise is heard which isn’t really there. A stroke, concussion, or brain injury can all be the underlying sources of tinnitus, as well as others. As the brain heals, neurological tinnitus will, in some instances, clear up on its own. It might be irreversible in other instances.
- Subjective tinnitus: When you’re the only one who can hear the sound of your tinnitus, which is really common, hearing specialists will refer to your condition as a subjective tinnitus. Lots of other types of tinnitus also fall into this category. For instance, neurological tinnitus can also be subjective tinnitus. There are a large number of sounds that can manifest with subjective tinnitus, including buzzing, ringing, screeching, roaring, thumping, and many others.
- Objective tinnitus: When the sound you’re hearing in your ears is a real, verifiable sound, it’s known as objective tinnitus. Objective tinnitus is not really as common as subjective tinnitus, but it still occurs. Most commonly, this means you’re dealing with something called pulsatile tinnitus, which happens when you’re hearing your pulse or circulatory system. Objective tinnitus causes those sounds to be unusually loud.
- Somatic tinnitus: Tinnitus sounds are often rather constant for many individuals coping with them. Both objective and subjective tinnitus have this characteristic. However, somatic tinnitus is different. This is tinnitus that grows worse with movement. Normally, somatic tinnitus will cause the symptoms to become more intense when you move your head or neck.
The majority of these forms of tinnitus aren’t generally mutually exclusive. You might have subjective tinnitus and neurological tinnitus together, for example. In order for us to develop a treatment plan, we will first need to identify the underlying cause of your tinnitus.
Getting assistance with your tinnitus
If your tinnitus is here this minute and gone the next, you probably don’t have to do anything about it. But if your tinnitus sticks around or returns frequently, it might have real and significant impacts on your day-to-day life. That’s when it’s especially important to speak with a hearing specialist to get specialized care and find some tinnitus relief.
We have several different tinnitus management strategies we may try depending on the root cause of your symptoms. A few of these strategies can decrease the intensity of your symptoms making them less obvious. We may also utilize masking techniques to hide your symptoms.
Tinnitus can’t usually be cured, but it can be effectively managed. We will help you personalize the best treatment for your specific situation. That way, you can more easily disregard the buzzing or ringing in your ears, and get back to the life you love.
