You Know when you’re viewing an action movie and the hero has a thunderous explosion close by and their ears begin to ring? Well, guess what: that probably means our hero suffered at least a minor traumatic brain injury!
Naturally, action movies don’t emphasize the brain injury part. But that ringing in our hero’s ears signifies a condition called tinnitus. Tinnitus is most often discussed from the perspective of hearing loss, but actually, traumatic brain injuries such as concussions can also cause this particular ringing in the ears.
Concussions, after all, are one of the most common traumatic brain injuries that happen. And there are a number of reasons concussions can occur (car crashes, sporting accidents, and falls, for example). How something such as a concussion causes tinnitus can be, well, complicated. But here’s the good news: even if you sustain a brain injury that causes tinnitus, you can normally treat and manage your condition.
Concussions, exactly what are they?
A concussion is a particular form of traumatic brain injury (TBI). One way to view it is that your brain is protected by sitting tightly in your skull. When anything occurs and shakes the head violently enough, your brain begins moving around inside of your skull. But because there’s so little additional space in there, your brain may literally smash into the inside of your skull.
This harms your brain! The brain can impact one or more sides of your skull. And when this happens, you get a concussion. When you picture this, it makes it easy to see how a concussion is literally brain damage. Here are a few symptoms of a concussion:
- Ringing in the ears
- Loss of memory and confusion
- Slurred speech
- Blurry vision or dizziness
- Nausea and vomiting
- Headaches
- A slow or delayed response to questions
This list isn’t complete, but you get the point. Several weeks to a few months is the normal duration of concussion symptoms. Brain damage from one concussion is typically not permanent, most individuals will end up making a full recovery. However, repeated or multiple concussions are a different story (generally speaking, it’s a good idea to avoid these).
How is tinnitus caused by a concussion?
Can a concussion interfere with your hearing? Really?
The question of concussions and tinnitus is an intriguing one. Because it’s more correct to say that traumatic brain injuries (even mild ones) can result in tinnitus, It isn’t just concussions. That ringing in your ears can be activated by even mild brain injuries. That may occur in a few ways:
- Disruption of the Ossicular Chain: There are three bones in your ear that help transmit sounds to your brain. These bones can be pushed out of place by a significant concussive, impactive event. Tinnitus can be caused by this and it can also disrupt your hearing.
- Damage to your hearing: Experiencing an explosion at close distance is the cause of concussions and TBIs for lots of members of the military. Irreversible hearing loss can be caused when the stereocilia in your ears are injured by the incredibly noisy shock wave of an explosion. Tinnitus isn’t always caused by a concussion, but they definitely do share some common causes.
- A “labyrinthine” concussion: This form of concussion takes place when the inner ear is injured due to your TBI. Tinnitus and hearing loss, due to inflammation, can be the result of this damage.
- Disruption of communication: In some cases, the part of your brain that manages hearing can become damaged by a concussion. As a result, the signals sent from the ear to your brain can’t be precisely digested and tinnitus can be the outcome.
- Nerve damage: There’s also a nerve that is responsible for sending sounds you hear to your brain, which a concussion can damage.
- Meniere’s Syndrome: The onset of a condition known as Meniere’s Syndrome can be caused by a TBI. This is a result of the buildup of pressure within the inner ear. Sooner or later, Meniere’s syndrome can result in significant tinnitus and hearing loss.
It’s important to stress that every traumatic brain injury and concussion is a bit different. Every patient will receive personalized care and instructions from us. Certainly, if you think you have suffered a traumatic brain injury or a concussion, you need to call us for an evaluation as soon as possible.
When you get a concussion and tinnitus is the result, how can it be managed?
Typically, it will be a temporary situation if tinnitus is the consequence of a concussion. How long can tinnitus linger after a concussion? Well, it may last weeks or possibly months. But, it’s likely that your tinnitus is long lasting if it persists for more than a year. Over time, in these situations, treatment plans to manage your condition will be the best strategy.
Here are some ways to achieve this:
- Hearing aid: Sometimes, tinnitus becomes prominent because the rest of the world goes into the background (as is the situation with non-TBI-caused hearing loss, everything else becomes quieter, so your tinnitus sounds louder). Hearing aids help your tinnitus fade into the background by turning the volume up on everything else.
- Therapy: In some cases, therapy, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can be utilized to help patients disregard the noise caused by their tinnitus. You disregard the sound after accepting it. It will require some therapy, practice, and time though.
- Masking device: This device is similar to a hearing aid, but instead of helping you hear things louder, it creates a specific noise in your ear. This noise is custom tailored to your tinnitus, drowning out the sound so you can pay attention to voices, or other sounds you really want to hear.
In some cases, additional therapies might be required to accomplish the expected result. Treatment of the root concussion may be required in order to get rid of the tinnitus. Depending on the nature of your concussion, there could be several possible courses of action. This means a precise diagnosis is incredibly important in this regard.
Find out what the best plan of treatment may be for you by giving us a call.
You can manage tinnitus caused by a TBI
A concussion can be a substantial and traumatic situation in your life. When you get a concussion, it’s a bad day! And if you have ringing in your ears, you may ask yourself, why do I have ringing in my ears after a car accident?
It could be days later or immediately after the crash that tinnitus symptoms emerge. However, it’s essential to remember that tinnitus after a head injury can be successfully managed. Schedule a consultation with us today.
