Dorothy FarrarTinnitus
Tinnitus refers to unpleasant ringing in the ears, which, however, only the patient himself hears and is not perceptible to other people. In this case, one speaks of a subjective tinnitus. In recent years, the number of tinnitus sufferers has risen sharply. Noise and stress pollution increase the risk of suffering tinnitus.
What is tinnitus?
Tinnitus or tinnitus aurum is the Latin name and means something like “hissing / ringing of the ears” (ear noises). In medicine, a distinction is made between objective (externally perceptible and measurable) and much more common subjective tinnitus. Depending on how long this tinnitus has existed, it is classified as an acute, subacute or chronic disease.
Each of these three forms of disease can be further divided into degrees of severity (I-IV). The respective severity provides information about the suffering of those affected. Here, the classification of the severity ranges from:
- I = hardly any complaints
- II = mostly complaints only at complete rest (often in stressful situations)
- III = severe complaints (accompanied by restrictions on everyday life)
- IV = massive impairments (illness determines the entire everyday life)
There are a variety of factors that can cause tinnitus. Often ear noises are a symptom of various diseases of the ear (ear canal, inner ear, middle ear). Especially young people are affected by tinnitus today.
Causes
Tinnitus can have a variety of causes. It is relatively harmless if earwax clogs the ear canal and ear noises occur for this reason. However, if a middle ear infection is not sufficiently treated, it can lead to a tear in the eardrum, which in turn can be the cause of later tinnitus.Very often, especially in young people, however, this tinnitus arises due to much too loud music (e.g. headphones, music concerts).
Regardless of this, diseases such as sudden hearing loss, a tumor in the area of the auditory nerves, a brain tumor, drug use or mental illness can also be the reason for tinnitus.
People who expose themselves to constant emotional stress (stress, excessive demands) may also belong to the group who are prone to tinnitus.
Other underlying diseases that can cause tinnitus:
symptoms and course
Tinnitus sufferers often report a constant (continuous tone) or rhythmic humming, ringing, whistling, rattling, knocking, hammering in their ears. The tinnitus can be perceived as so loud for the patient that the hearing ability suffers.
A large number of those affected come to terms with the ringing in the ears over time and learn to live with it. In severe cases, permanent tinnitus can lead to serious mental illnesses such as sleep disorders or depression .
When to the doctor?
If you experience occasional ringing in your ears, this is perfectly normal. The cause can be a drop in blood pressure, sudden tension in the neck area or work-related stress. Everyone is able to track down such causes themselves. In most cases, the tinnitus goes away on its own. A doctor’s visit is not necessary.
The situation is different if the ringing in the ears has no recognizable reason and is unusually strong. It can be a so-called acoustic neuroma or a sudden hearing loss. In acoustic neuroma, tinnitus is only one of several side effects. It indicates a slowly growing tumor. In this case, other symptoms such as sudden unilateral hearing loss or Headaches can indicate that it is a sudden hearing loss or something else. In these cases, the tinnitus should prompt a doctor’s visit. Acoustic neuromas or sudden hearing loss require immediate medical treatment.
The joint occurrence of tinnitus with severe tension can indicate pinched nerves or blocked muscles. Prompt treatment by a physiotherapist could release the blockages and end the tinnitus as well. But to make sure that there is nothing more behind it, you should first have an examination by your family doctor or orthopedist. A different treatment strategy may be necessary for vertebral prolapses caused by osteoporosis.
Diagnosis
Everyone will be familiar with ringing in the ears. These can appear suddenly, but usually go away very quickly. In some people, however, they stay in the head and ear as continuous tones and cause discomfort.
The path to a specialist should lead the person concerned if the constant buzzing, hissing and whistling has not gone away even after a day. In this case, acute therapy should be carried out by an audiologist. The faster you react, the greater the chances of recovery.
If there is a suspicion of tinnitus, the specialist will carry out various examinations in addition to the anamnesis in order to consolidate the diagnosis of tinnitus. Hearing tests are just as important as detailed ENT examinations. For example, the tinnitus noise is analyzed in more detail. This is done by determining the frequency. The volume of the noise can be determined using a so-called audiometer.
As part of a tympanogram, the tympanic pressure in the ear and the function of the auditory ossicles are checked. Likewise, an examination of the auditory nerve is carried out by brainstem audiometry. An equilibrium test can be used to determine whether the tinnitus is associated with a balance disorder.
Complications
When tinnitus leads to complications, the common consequence of ringing in the ears is depression. Some people perceive the ringing in the ears as so energizing that they subsequently become unable to work and depressed.
Tinnitus can impair hearing as a complication. If left untreated, it can lead to increasing social isolation for those affected. Patients increasingly withdraw because of the persistent ringing in the ears. They only deal with their symptom. They have trouble sleeping and see themselves as suffering.
In some cases, the tinnitus can be so severe that the sufferer develops suicidal thoughts. In this case, the depression needs to be treated. Anyone affected can learn to deal better with ringing in the ears through behavioral therapy or multimodal therapy approaches. If necessary, the fitting of a hearing aid makes sense. Listening training can also be helpful.
Other types of complications may arise when there is more than a ringing in the ear caused by stress or tension. Ringing in the ears can also be caused by reduced blood flow in the ear. Complications arising from blood pressure problems as a result of diabetes, Thrombosis or Arteriosclerosis belong in the hands of a doctor. If the tinnitus occurs as a result of a sudden hearing loss, it is itself a complication. Another consequence of the sudden hearing loss can be deafness.
Treatment and therapy
Tinnitus should be diagnosed and treated as early as possible by a family doctor or a specialist in ear, nose and throat medicine. Treatment for tinnitus depends on how long the patient has had the symptoms and what caused them (if known).
In the case of acute tinnitus, rapid medical help is crucial. In principle, the best prospects for treatment are in the first 24 hours after the first symptoms appear.
If the patient only has earwax in the ear, which is responsible for the tinnitus, this is removed by the doctor and the noises have disappeared. However, it is not always that simple. If the tinnitus has other causes (inner ear), the patient usually receives infusions (sugar/saline solutions) with blood circulation-enhancing or anti-inflammatory drugs at the beginning of the therapy.
Another – but still controversial – therapeutic approach is hyperbaric oxygen therapy, in which the patient inhales oxygen in a pressure chamber through a mask. This improves blood flow in the body. If the tinnitus is already chronic or other measures do not help, the patient must learn to live with his tinnitus.
Relaxation exercises or tinnitus retraining therapy can help to stop focusing on the ringing in the ears and to learn to “overhear” the tinnitus.
Outlook and prognosis
In principle, tinnitus can go away on its own. The chance of recovery is particularly good if the causes are localized in the auditory canal or in the middle ear.
In acute tinnitus, i.e. tinnitus that has not existed for a long time, drug and circulation-promoting treatment measures or so-called hyperbaric oxygen therapy show the best results, although the effects of the therapeutic measures have not been proven. Spontaneous healing in acute tinnitus can often be observed in about 60 to 80 percent of cases.
The prognosis, on the other hand, is unsatisfactory for chronic tinnitus. The tinnitus retraining therapy still shows the best results here, but the noise in the ear can not be treated with it. Only the patient’s attitude to tinnitus is treated, the success rates are about 80 percent.
In general, it can be said that the earlier the treatment of tinnitus is started, the better the outlook. Once acute tinnitus has developed into chronic tinnitus, the chances of complete disappearance are significantly lower.
Prevention
Tinnitus does not cause pain, but is still extremely uncomfortable for patients. Therefore, one should try to avoid the risk factors for the development of tinnitus.People who are under constant stress should consciously allow themselves rest periods and then relax.
Exercises such as yoga or Autogenic Training can be learned by anyone and used in everyday life. However, the body not only needs recovery phases to prevent tinnitus, but also protective measures against loud noise.
If you go to music concerts or are exposed to a lot of noise in other places, you can protect your ears from tinnitus with earplugs, for example, if it is not possible to avoid the noise.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.