Ringing or buzzing?

Have you experienced ringing in the ear? Or any other sounds like clicking or buzzing especially in quiet environment? Afraid not, you are not alone and that is called Tinnitus. In some condition, the tinnitus can lasts for more than minutes or even all the time. So, what exactly is tinnitus? According to American Speech-language and Hearing Association, tinnitus is defined as ringing in the ears when there are no other sound are present. Tinnitus is not a disease but a symptom of an underlying health condition in most cases and the most popular tinnitus often associated to:

·      Hearing loss

·      Obstruction of middle ear

·      Neck and head trauma

·      Temporomandibular Joint disorder

·      Sinus Pressure and Barometric Trauma

·      Traumatic Brain Injury

·      Ototoxic Drug

·      Other disease and medical condition.

Tinnitus can be divided into 2 categories:

·      Objective Tinnitus – physician or doctor and patient can hear the tinnitus. Usually is associated with obstruction of abnormal blood flow in head area.

·      Subjective Tinnitus: Only patient can hear the tinnitus.

Tinnitus cannot harm people. But the effect of the tinnitus can be harmful as it effect the quality of life. Based on a survey done by American Tinnitus Association in 2014, people with tinnitus often experienced distress, depression, anxiety, sleep disturbances and also irritability or frustration. And these will affect the quality of life of the person.

For people who are having tinnitus, it is advisable to reduce caffeine intact, control your stress level, have enough sleeping, increase antioxidant food, and seek advice from the professionals.

We, audiologists at Eartistic, are here to help anyone with tinnitus as we provide

·      Full hearing evaluation

·      Tinnitus assessment

·      Customised tinnitus management along with hyperacusis

·      Counseling

If you have this tinnitus or think you may have tinnitus, please seek help as you are not alone. We are here to help you.

Written by,

Amirul Asyraf Jamaludin

Audiologist JB branch

Reference

Tinnitus by American Speech-language and Hearing Association, retrieved from https://www.asha.org/public/hearing/Tinnitus/

The Human Impact on Tinnitus by American Tinnitus Association, retrieved from https://www.ata.org/understanding-facts/impact-tinnitus