Have you ever experienced a sudden loud ringing in your ear? Your senses immediately mutes the surrounding noise, and it completely focuses on this sharp agitating noise.
“This phenomenon is called tinnitus. ”
Tinnitus is not an experience most people would usually talk about in everyday conversation. However, this happens to more people than you think.
What is Tinnitus?
Tinnitus is defined as a ringing sound that no one else hears. This may also be characterized as whistling, clicking, pulsing, or roaring noises.
Tinnitus can be broken down into two categories: subjective and objective.
Subjective tinnitus is a purely electrochemical phenomenon and is defined as a sound that is audible only to the person with tinnitus.
Objective tinnitus, on the other hand, originates from a specific sound source that can also be heard by the people around you.
What Causes Tinnitus?
Depending on the noise you hear, the kind of tinnitus you experience may also be cause by the following:- Clicking: May be caused by the muscle contractions in or around your ear.
- Pulsing, rushing or humming: Sound caused by activities of the blood vessel, such as high blood pressure.
- Low-pitched ringing. May be due to ear canal blockages or Meniere’s disease, an inner ear condition that affects hearing and balance
- High-pitched ringing. Likely caused by loud noise, hearing loss or medications. Acoustic neuroma can cause continuous, high-pitched ringing in one ear.
Other causes include:
- age-related hearing loss
- muscle spasms in your middle ear
- high blood pressure
- high cholesterol
- head and neck injuries
- temporomandibular joint disorders
- Earwax buildup
How Serious is This Condition?
Tinnitus is rarely an indication of a more serious medical condition. However, it can have an impact on your quality of living and cause complications to your daily routine.
Tinnitus usually goes away over time, either because your body fights or adapts to this condition. But if this is gravely affecting your mood and concentration, it is still advisable that you seek medical assistance to find ways to deal with it.
Some of these Tinnitus treatments include:
- Earwax removal. Removing an earwax blockage can decrease tinnitus symptoms.
- Treating a blood vessel condition. Underlying blood vessel conditions may require medication, surgery or another treatment to address the problem.
- Hearing aids. If your tinnitus is caused by noise-induced or age-related hearing loss, using hearing aids may help improve your symptoms.
- Changing your medication. If a medication you’re taking appears to be the cause of tinnitus, your doctor may recommend stopping or reducing the drug, or switching to a different medication. Here are some medications that induce tinnitus:
- Aspirin (in large doses)
- Bumetanide
- Chloroquine
- Erythromycin
- Gentamicin
- Vincristine
These treatments can be done with the advice of a trusted ENT doctor. Hearing Solutions is home to the best ENT Doctors in Cebu. We dedicate ourselves to enhancing the quality of hearing for all.
You can visit us at our Century Plaza Branch in Juana Osmeña St, Cebu City or at CPG Arcade, North Road, Consolacion. For more details, you can call us at 0932 788 1168 or message us on Facebook.
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