It’s very common for individuals to experience tinnitus. Tinnitus can become so overwhelming that it becomes a burden to live with for about 20 million individuals around the world. And there are also more prevalent presentations of tinnitus which are a lot more mild and intermittent and are also easier to deal with.
When you hear sounds in your ears that don’t have an outside source and nobody else can hear them, that’s tinnitus. This may be a ringing in the ears or a buzzing sound you can’t shake. Tinnitus is frequently linked to hearing loss, but that doesn’t mean that one condition will automatically result in the other.
In fact, there are a considerable variety of types of tinnitus. And each one will call for a different treatment approach.
Tinnitus – exactly what is it?
Exactly what is tinnitus and how is it caused? Well, it’s significant to note that not all types of tinnitus are the same. The various causes of tinnitus will manifest with similar symptoms. But distinguishing the cause can be crucial to identifying the best treatment strategy.
For some people, tinnitus is the result of a neurological issue, including a traumatic brain injury or a concussion. Hearing loss due to age can be another factor that can trigger tinnitus. Here are a few of the most prevalent types of tinnitus:
- Neurological tinnitus: Tinnitus is not always caused by ear issues. In some cases, the root cause lies within the brain. If your baseline neurological functions are weakened by injury it can activate neurological tinnitus. This means that the normal communication between your brain and ears isn’t functioning properly. As a result, a phantom noise is heard which isn’t actually there. Neurological tinnitus can be a result of concussion, stroke, traumatic brain injury, and others. In some instances, neurological tinnitus may go away as the brain heals. For others, it may be permanent.
- Subjective tinnitus: With subjective tinnitus, the sound you’re hearing is phantom and doesn’t objectively exist and no one else 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: When the sound you’re hearing in your ears is an actual, verifiable sound, it’s referred to as objective tinnitus. Objective tinnitus does happen, though it’s not as common as subjective types. Pulsatile tinnitus, which is when you hear your heartbeat or pulse, is an example of this type of tinnitus. Objective tinnitus causes those sounds to be unusually loud.
- Somatic tinnitus: Tinnitus sounds are often quite constant for many people coping with them. That’s true for both subjective and objective tinnitus. With somatic tinnitus though, things are a bit different. This is tinnitus that grows worse with movement. Typically, somatic tinnitus will cause the symptoms to become more intense when you move your head or neck.
Most of these forms of tinnitus are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, you might have neurological tinnitus and subjective tinnitus. Identifying the cause of your symptoms can help your hearing specialist decide the best tinnitus treatment strategy for your symptoms.
Getting help with your tinnitus
You probably won’t have to take any specific action if your tinnitus symptoms are sporadic. But if your tinnitus sticks around or returns frequently, it might have real and severe impacts on your everyday life. When that happens, your best plan to get some relief is to call us for a consultation.
After we determine the underlying cause of your symptoms, there are a few treatment strategies we can employ. A few of these techniques can minimize the intensity of your symptoms making them less evident. Other treatment solutions can mask the sound you’re hearing.
Generally, there’s no cure for tinnitus, although it can usually be effectively treated. We will help you personalize the best treatment for your particular situation. That way, you can more easily ignore the buzzing or ringing in your ears, and get back to the life you love.