It’s really common for people to experience tinnitus. Tinnitus can become so extreme that it becomes a burden to live with for around 20 million individuals worldwide. This does not even count the more common types of tinnitus, which for most individuals can come and go without causing a huge impact on their quality of life.
When you hear noises in your ears that don’t have an external source and nobody else can hear them, that’s tinnitus. This might 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 immediately lead to the other.
As a matter of fact, tinnitus comes in a number of forms. Treating these varieties of tinnitus will call for different approaches.
Tinnitus – exactly what is it?
So, what is tinnitus and where does it stem from? Well, it’s important to note that not all types of tinnitus are the same. Regardless of the specific cause, the symptoms will be similar. But distinguishing the cause can be essential to finding the proper treatment approach.
For some individuals, tinnitus is the result of a neurological issue, including a traumatic brain injury or a concussion. Hearing loss related to age can be another aspect that can trigger tinnitus. Here are some of the most prevalent types of tinnitus:
- Neurological tinnitus: Tinnitus isn’t always caused by ear issues. Sometimes, the underlying cause lies within the brain. 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 functioning correctly. The outcome is that you hear a phantom sound that might not be there. Neurological tinnitus can be a result of concussion, stroke, traumatic brain injury, and more. In some situations, neurological tinnitus may go away as the brain heals. It may be permanent in other instances.
- Subjective tinnitus: When you’re the only one who can hear the sound of your tinnitus, which is really common, hearing specialists will refer to 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. There are a large number of sounds that can manifest with subjective tinnitus, including buzzing, ringing, screeching, roaring, thumping, and many others.
- Objective tinnitus: When you have objective tinnitus, you’re hearing a real, verifiable, objective sound. Objective tinnitus isn’t really as common as subjective tinnitus, but it still occurs. Most commonly, this means you’re experiencing something called pulsatile tinnitus, which occurs when you’re hearing your heartbeat or circulatory system. For those with objective tinnitus, that pulsing sound typically 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 attribute. However, somatic tinnitus is different. This form of tinnitus becomes more extreme when you move around. Typically, somatic tinnitus will cause the symptoms to become more intense when you move your head or neck.
Often, individuals will have more than one type of tinnitus at the same time. 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.
Finding tinnitus assistance
You most likely won’t have to take any specific 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 coming back. That’s when it’s particularly important to talk to a hearing specialist to get specialized care and find some relief from your tinnitus.
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 apparent. Other treatment options can mask the sound you’re hearing.
Generally, there’s no cure for tinnitus, though it can usually be successfully treated. We will work with you to formulate treatments that work for your symptoms. This will help you enjoy life again by pushing your symptoms into the background where they can be more easily disregarded.