What Causes Ringing in the Ears?

Tinnitus is the result of different pathological changes in many diseases involving the auditory system. The etiology is complex and the mechanism is unclear. It is mainly manifested by the absence of a corresponding external sound source or electrical stimulation, and subjectively has a sound sensation in the ear or the skull. It is clinically a symptom of many diseases and the first symptom of some serious diseases (such as acoustic neuroma).

Basic Information

English name

tinnitus

Visiting department

ENT

Common causes

Hearing disorders, or systemic disorders

Common symptoms

Diversified, unilateral or bilateral, or whine, continuous or intermittent

Causes of tinnitus

Auditory system disease

(1) External ear canal embolism, swelling or foreign body.

(2) Various otitis media and otosclerosis in the middle ear.

(3) Meniere's disease, sudden deafness, trauma, noise deafness, senile deafness, etc.

2. Systemic disease

(1) Cardio-cerebrovascular diseases, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, arteriosclerosis, hypotension, etc.

(2) Autonomic dysfunction, mental stress, depression, etc.

(3) Endocrine diseases: abnormal thyroid function, diabetes, etc.

(4) Others: neurodegeneration (such as demyelinating disease), inflammation (viral infection), trauma, drug poisoning, cervical spondylosis, temporomandibular joint disease, or malocclusion.

Tinnitus clinical manifestations

Generally speaking, it is diversified, it can be unilateral or bilateral, and it can also be a head humming. Sustainability can also occur intermittently. The sound can be various, with different pitches.

1. The relationship between tinnitus and hearing

Some tinnitus patients are accompanied by hearing loss, others are normal, but tinnitus does not cause or exacerbate hearing loss.

2. The relationship between tinnitus and psychological factors

Long-term tinnitus can cause patients to have irritability, anxiety, tension, fear or depression, and bad emotional states can aggravate tinnitus, causing a vicious circle between tinnitus and bad mood. Psychological factors play an important role in the process of tinnitus.

Tinnitus diagnosis

1. Understand medical history

Perform ear and systemic clinical examinations.

2. audiology examination

Pure tone audiometry, acoustic impedance audiometry, tinnitus tone and loudness matching detection, tinnitus after-effect suppression and minimum mask level detection, and other audiological and electrophysiological examinations.

Tinnitus treatment

Early treatment of tinnitus, 3 to 6 months is an important period of treatment.

Cause treatment

Treatment of the primary cause of tinnitus.

2. Drug treatment

Vasodilators, calcium antagonists, tinnitus inhibitors, tinnitus-reducing drugs and neurotrophic drugs.

3. Psychological consultation and adjustment

Analyze the causes and pathological changes of tinnitus, eliminate the patient's worry, warn the patient to be in a sound environment, actively contact the sounds of nature, strive for coexistence with tinnitus, and compare tinnitus to the roar of a train, the noise of a refrigerator, etc. Let patients try their best to eliminate the psychological reaction caused by tinnitus, suppress negative emotions, and build confidence that tinnitus can be treated.

4. Masking treatment

It should be performed with tinnitus therapy equipment, tinnitus masker, pure tone audiometer or hearing aid.

5. Tinnitus retraining and practice therapy

The purpose is to make the patient adapt to and get used to tinnitus, thereby reducing the degree of tinnitus, and removing the physical and mental disorders caused by tinnitus. This therapy has been widely used in clinical practice abroad, and is suitable for patients with long-term and severe tinnitus, mainly including counseling and sound therapy.

6. Hearing discrimination therapy

Traditional Chinese medicine treatment.