It’s very common for people to experience tinnitus. Around 20 million individuals routinely suffer from chronic tinnitus so severe 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 continual buzzing or ringing in the ears. Although hearing loss is frequently associated with tinnitus, there isn’t always a cause-and-effect relationship between the two.
As a matter of fact, tinnitus comes in a number of forms. And each one will call for a different approach to treatment.
What is tinnitus?
Exactly what is tinnitus and what are its causes? Well, it’s essential to mention that not all kinds of tinnitus are the same. Regardless of the specific cause, the symptoms will be similar. But determining the cause can be crucial to finding the best treatment approach.
In some cases, concussions or other traumatic brain injuries or neurological issues can be the cause. In other circumstances, tinnitus may result from age-related hearing loss. Here are a few of the most common types of tinnitus:
- Neurological tinnitus: Issues with the ear are not always the cause of tinnitus. In some cases, the underlying cause lies within the brain. If your baseline neurological functions are weakened by injury it can trigger 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. Neurological tinnitus can be caused by concussion, stroke, traumatic brain injury, and others. In some instances, neurological tinnitus might resolve as the brain heals. It might be permanent in other instances.
- Subjective tinnitus: With subjective tinnitus, the sound you’re hearing is phantom and has no external source and only you can hear it. Lots of other forms of tinnitus also fall into this category. For example, neurological tinnitus can also be subjective tinnitus. Subjective tinnitus can present as lots of different sound types, including ringing, buzzing, squeals, whistles, roars, and more.
- Objective tinnitus: With objective tinnitus, you’re hearing a real, verifiable, objective sound. Objective tinnitus isn’t really as common as subjective tinnitus, but it still happens. Pulsatile tinnitus, which is when you hear your heartbeat or pulse, is an illustration of this form of tinnitus. For individuals with objective tinnitus, that pulsing sound usually seems louder than it should.
- Somatic tinnitus: For many individuals, the sound they hear with tinnitus is relatively constant. Both objective and subjective tinnitus have this characteristic. With somatic tinnitus though, things are a bit different. This form of tinnitus becomes more intense when you move around. Usually, somatic tinnitus is most susceptible to movement of the head or neck areas.
The majority of these forms of tinnitus are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, you might have neurological tinnitus and subjective tinnitus. In order for us to formulate a treatment plan, we will first need to determine the underlying cause of your tinnitus.
Getting help with your tinnitus
You most likely won’t have to take any specific action if your tinnitus symptoms are intermittent. But if your tinnitus hangs around or comes back frequently, it may have real and serious impacts on your everyday life. That’s when it’s especially important to talk to a hearing specialist to receive specialized care and find some tinnitus relief.
After we determine the underlying cause of your symptoms, there are a number of treatment strategies we can utilize. A few of these strategies can decrease the intensity of your symptoms making them less apparent. Other treatment solutions can mask the sound you’re hearing.
Tinnitus can’t generally be cured, but it can be successfully managed. We will help you customize the best treatment for your specific situation. This will help you enjoy life again by pushing your symptoms into the background where they can be more easily ignored.