What can you do with tinnitus?

Q: I hear a persistent ringing in my ears that drives me nuts and hinders me to sleep. How can I leave?

Tinnitus is the experience of listening to phantom sounds, usually in the form of ringing, buzzing or roaring sounds. This is a common and usually harmless state. According to Analysis 2024About 11 percent of American adults experience tinnitus, and 41 percent of them did not constantly hear sounds than sporadically.

It is rarely cured of tinnitus, but the prognosis of a person depends on what causes symptoms. Even if it is not curable: “There are many good ways to manage,” said Dr. Mohamed Elrakhawa, an ear, nose and throat doctor (or ET) at the Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

Causes of tinnitus

Tinnitus may have different causes, said Dr. Zachary Schwama, Ent at Icahn School of Medicine in Mount Sinai, Novel York. Sometimes, he said, it could be a result tumorIN nerve problemsasymmetries in the veins, holes in Or liquid for Drum drum, trolley or bone damage behind the drums. In such cases, it is typical that tinnitus occurs only in one ear, and sometimes it can resemble the sound of heartbeat. If your tinnitus presents in this way, it is critical to check it by a doctor, said Dr. Schwam.

But most of the time tinnitus is a harmless by -product of hearing loss, said Dr. Kenny F. Lin, ENT at Houston Methodist Hospital. “Hair cells of snail nerve endings are damaged and send a changed signal to the brain, which is seen as ringing, humming, buzzing or stationary sound,” he said.

Dr. Schwam said that people who are regularly exposed to raucous sounds are more often developing tinnitus. “Enjoy concerts, enjoy work, but make sure you utilize the right ear protection,” he said.

Often tinnitus is a slight irritation, which in time becomes less troublesome. But in some cases it can become devastating, disturbing the ability to work and sleep, said Dr. Elrakhawa. The tinnitus was associated with Anxiety, depression And in scarce cases even suicide.

Dr. Schwam said that stress, anxiety and lack of sleep can worsen tinnitus. “I often tell people that these things do not necessarily cause your tinnitus, but they certainly do not assist,” he said.

Treatment depends on the cause

To determine the cause of tinnitus in the ears, the doctor will ask about the clinical history of the person and conduct a physical examination.

“If it is only one ear or in both ears, if it is all the time or comes and goes away, if there are some triggers or situations that deteriorate, they all really assist to focus on what the next step would be,” said Dr. Elrakhawa. The doctor will probably suggest a hearing test and may also ask for other types of tests, including MRI or CT scans.

Dr. Schwam said that if the tinnitus is caused by the problem of bones, nerve or circulation, then the treatment of the problem undergoing the problem can cure it. But if hearing loss is a cause, then treatment can improve the symptoms, but they may not eliminate them, he said.

Dr. Lin said that usually tinnitus treatment in people with hearing loss is aimed at reducing the impact on their daily lives, especially on sleep and ability to work. He said that one popular approach is to listen to masking sounds, such as white noise, ocean sounds or rain, music and sounds of fans or humidifiers, which can make noise in the ears less noticeable.

“As long as the brain is able to hear external sounds, you will hear internal sounds less often,” he said.

Auditory usany can also assist if a person’s hearing loss is significant enough to justify it. “The auditory axivatele strengthens sounds that you don’t hear well anymore, so it is essentially a masking device that you wear all day,” said Dr. Lin.

Some hearing aids even have special tinnitus masking settings that can transfer certain frequencies to the ear to optimize masking. Counseling and other forms of therapy can also assist.

“We often meet patients who suffer terribly because of tinnitus and negative effects on mood, including fear and depression,” said Dr. C. Matthew Stewart, Ent at Johns Hopkins Medicine. But when doctors explain what is happening, and they provide patients that their tinnitus is not risky, it can assist them better, said Dr. Schwam.

Some patients utilize Cognitive behavioral therapya form of psychotherapy that can assist people cope with symptoms or from Therapy for retraining tinnituswhich includes consulting with solid therapy.

Watch out for wonderful medicines

Dr. Elrakhawa said that if you experience tinnitus tinnitus in your ears, talk to your primary healthcare provider or ask for a referral to ENT or an audiologist who treats tinnitus. Although there is a lot without a prescription Substances and eardrum On sale as tinnitus treatments in the ears do not know about any that turned out to work.

Some of the patients Dr. Schwama brought without a prescription earrings containing hefty metals for their visits, asking if they can assist.

“I look at drops and they have ingredients that I would never put into a human body,” he said.