It’s really common for individuals to experience tinnitus. Around 20 million people regularly cope with persistent tinnitus so intense that it becomes burdensome. And there are also more common presentations of tinnitus which are much more mild and sporadic and are also easier to deal with.
When you hear noises in your ears that don’t have an outside source and nobody else can hear them, that’s tinnitus. It may manifest as a persistent buzzing or ringing in the ears. Tinnitus is frequently linked to hearing loss, but that doesn’t mean that one condition will automatically lead to the other.
In fact, there are a significant variety of forms of tinnitus. And each one will require a different treatment approach.
Tinnitus – exactly what is it?
So, what is tinnitus and where does it come from? The first thing to recognize is that tinnitus comes in a number of forms and causes. Regardless of the particular cause, the symptoms will be similar. But distinguishing the cause can be crucial to finding the proper treatment strategy.
For some individuals, tinnitus is the result of a neurological problem, like a traumatic brain injury or a concussion. Hearing loss related to age can be another aspect that can cause tinnitus. Here are some of the most prevalent types of tinnitus:
- Neurological tinnitus: Tinnitus isn’t always caused by ear issues. The brain itself can sometimes be the cause. If your baseline neurological functions are impaired by injury it can trigger neurological tinnitus. This means that the typical communication between your brain and ears isn’t working properly. As a result, a phantom noise is heard which isn’t really there. A stroke, concussion, or brain injury can all be the root causes of tinnitus, as well as others. As the brain heals, neurological tinnitus will, in some situations, go away on its own. For others, it may be lasting.
- Subjective tinnitus: When only you can hear the sound of your tinnitus, which is very common, hearing specialists will talk about your condition as a subjective tinnitus. Lots of other forms of tinnitus also fall into this category. Neurological tinnitus, for instance, is frequently also subjective tinnitus. Subjective tinnitus can present as lots of 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 isn’t quite as common as subjective tinnitus, but it still occurs. Typically, this means you’re experiencing 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: For many people, the sound they hear with tinnitus is fairly constant. That’s true for both subjective and objective tinnitus. But, somatic tinnitus is different. This is tinnitus that gets worse with movement. Usually, somatic tinnitus will cause the symptoms to get worse when you move your head or neck.
Often, individuals will have more than one type of tinnitus at the same time. You may have subjective tinnitus and neurological tinnitus together, for example. In order for us to develop a treatment plan, we will first need to determine the underlying cause of your tinnitus.
Getting assistance with your tinnitus
You probably won’t need 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 occurs, your best plan to get some relief is to call us for a consultation.
After we determine the root cause of your symptoms, there are a number of treatment strategies we can employ. Several therapies can make the sounds you’re hearing less evident. We may also utilize masking techniques to hide your symptoms.
Tinnitus can’t generally be cured, but it can be successfully 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 enjoy.
