Tinnitus is a hearing disorder in the form of continuous ringing sounds in the ears. The ringing sounds can come in many forms such as buzzing, hassling, whistling, etc. Patients may have different sensations with different level of annoyance or loudness. Depending of the conditions, patients may hear intermittent ringing as well. Logically, tinnitus sufferers have difficulties to sleep or concentrate at work or study. Tinnitus is often associated with hearing loss, but it does not have anything in relation with hearing ability actually. Tinnitus is hardly a symptom of hearing loss; in fact, tinnitus is the sign of an increasing sensitivity of the hearing nerves. Moreover, tinnitus patients may suffer an extremely sensitive hearing nerve that leads them to hear unwanted sounds such as ringing.
The causes of tinnitus are varied; certain medical conditions are related as well. The following are a list of causes of tinnitus commonly diagnosed by doctors:
- Excessive earwax that brings blockage on the ear
- Ear infection
- A symptom of aging process
- Side effect of particular drugs including some antidepressants and anti-inflammatory
- The symptom of cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, and thyroid disorders
- A natural condition from head or neck injuries
- A symptom of Meniere’s disease
Other causes of tinnitus are including excessive alcohol and caffeine consumption. Due to the extensive list of possible causes of tinnitus, you should contact doctors or ENT surgeon to accept proper treatments in order to avoid worsening condition.