The Mechanism of Tinnitus
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Archive for September, 2009
One of the greatest and most possible mechanisms of tinnitus is dependent in the otoacoustic emissions. As what you probably already know is that inside the ear, especially in the inner ear area, there are hundreds of thousands of small, short, fine hairs that are called stereocilia. The stereocilia responds to sound waves and cells as they enter the ear. The stereocilia will then convert this stimulus into neural signals and back into acoustical vibrations. The sensing cells, which are connected to the vibratory cells in a neural feedback loop, gains or is regulated by the brain. This neural loop is normally configured to be just a bit below the start of self-oscillation. This set up allows the ear to be excellently sensitive and selective to sound. If something in the body or in the matrix of the ear changes, the delicate loop adjustment crosses the barrier and the same exact mechanism that causes excellent hearing now causes the disorder. For objective tinnitus, it can be measured by a very sensitive microphone or recording device placed outside the ear.
That is why it is very important for people not to abuse the stereocilia, because this is one of the factors that keep the inner ear matrix regulated. Listening to loud music or wearing headphones for prolonged periods of time will kill or damage the hair cells in the ear and the more stereocilia that you lose, afferent neurons will take their place. These afferent neurons activate a seldom used auditory part of the brain and cause the perception of non-existent sound or tinnitus.
Another possible mechanism of how the configuration in the inner ear can change is damage to the receptor cells. Although receptor cells can be replaced in birds and other lesser creatures, in mammals it is said to be produced only during embryogenesis. This means that it can only be reproduced through the use or omnipotent cells found in developing embryos. Since the research of this kind of theory is facing much controversy, then the possibility of replacing receptor cells as a cure for tinnitus is practically impossible. Therefore, if the stereocilia get damaged due to exposure to high decibel sounds, the deafness is inevitable. If the ringing in the patient’s ear is caused by damage of the receptor cells, then the ear may relay false information and may cause perception of sound even when none is present.
The objective type of this disorder is easier to understand. This cannot be said, however, of subjective tinnitus where the causes of the disorder are often obscure. There are some discussions in the medical world that this disorder is usually caused by stress and other physical mechanisms. It can also be aggravated by the acute awareness of the individual that they are actually suffering from the disorder. For cases like these, the patient’s ailment is often addressed by improving the state of his or her nervous system in general with the use of gradual, non-invasive and prolonged treatments.
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What You Ought To Know About Your Tinnitus
Incredibly, tinnitus is not precisely the medical condition that should be treated. To be more specific, this condition is apparently the symptoms of a graver underlying disease, illness or changes in your bodily structure. This is exactly why health care providers and specialists are more deliberate when it comes to providing tinnitus treatment. This is akin to you suffering from chest pains. The doctor can make the pain go away by simply giving you pain killers, but he or she would have to give you a battery of tests to find out precisely what causes those chest pains to occur in the first place; and how to prevent these occurrences in the future.
If you are getting that ear ringing sensation, even if it seems to be a mild one; a trip to your health care provider is imperative. Very often people who suffer from this condition either tolerates the discomfort (hoping that it will go away on its own); or tries to overpower it by putting on a louder and more favorable substitute like music. But the sad news is this: if you try both “remedies,” you can only deaden the noise for a particular time. Relief comes mostly within a certain time frame, particularly when the discomfort is still manageable and / or as long as the music continues to play. Once that discomfort escalates or the external stimulus is gone, the ringing in the ears may return in a louder, more persistent and more irritating pitch.
In many cases, subscribing to these remedies may even help accelerate this condition from mild to moderate and even to severe in a few hours time. Your condition may simply be bothersome now, but you have to consider the fact that the most extreme cases are debilitating. Many long time sufferers of the condition can no longer function normally since the noise occupies their thoughts on a 24/7 basis.
One of the markers of tinnitus is that this condition is not limited to simply ringing of the ears or ringing in ears. Any noise that invades your conscious self that has no basis in external sources can be considered as tinnitus. This includes the “phantom” noises that always bother you like the sound of crickets or tree frogs (when both are not present in your immediate vicinity.) Other sounds like the roaring of the waves or the whooshing sounds of the wind in the trees, when both are not present, may also be signs of this medical condition. However, the most common types tinnitus are mechanical noises like beeps, buzzing noises, clicks, hisses, humming noises, ticking sounds, whines, whistles and yes, ringing sensations as well.
It sound be pointed out though, that this medical condition usually exhibits only one form per person. That means that Tom, Dick and Harry may all be suffering from tinnitus, but Tom is hearing a continuous clicking sound, Dick hears the incessant chirping of the crickets, while Harry may be experiencing loud whistles that seem to come from antique trains. Very rarely does one person experience two or more pervading noises at the same time. This means that noise you hear inside your head may be different from everyone else. And in so saying, this is why it is truly imperative to seek medical advice to your condition ASAP.
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Trying To Find The Possible Causes Of Your Tinnitus
Make no mistake about it, but that ringing in ears sensation that you now constantly feel is not the real problem you should be addressing. Rather, it is an indication that you may be suffering from a more serious medical condition or two. In order to ascertain this, you need to figure out first when you first experienced tinnitus or that incessant ringing of the ears syndrome. Only then can you actually work on trying to find a cure for your problem. The key here is to think back on the precise moment when you thought you found a discernible noise invading your conscious thoughts.
Was it a couple of days after this very loud concert you attended recently? Was it during the height of you cold? Was it a few hours after taking a new kind of prescription medicine? The truth is: many people simply cannot recall the exact moment when the ear ringing incident started happening. It is with all probability that the tinnitus started very early on, but at a pitch that can easily be tolerated and ignored. However, by helping narrow down possible causes, you and your health care provider can seek tinnitus treatment sooner. And in which case, the damage done to your hearing can still be repaired in time.
Did the ringing in the ears start some time after a concert or any loud event you attended? Usually, rock concerts can reach about 120 to 150 decibels. Even blasting on an ear-piercing note on your electric guitar can reach 100+ decibels already. A firecracker exploding nearby can give off a blast of 180 decibels in a heartbeat. The street work with the jack hammer can reach 150+ decibels. And if you like listening to your mp4 player at full volume for say, the entire 45 minutes it takes for you to get to one place, then that would be an easy 110 decibels screaming in your ear canal. According to the World Health Organization, any noise beyond 100 decibels can cause irreparable damage to one’s hearing in as short as 15 minutes. The safe limit for hearing is pegged at only 70 decibels. If you are wondering how to gauge safe listening modes, try to keep in mind that the normal dial tone of any phone is set usually at 80 decibels already.
After any loud event, you will very often feel your ears “full” or muffled. Everything around you seems to be muted or even gibberish. This is an indication that you have already damaged the sensitive hairs in your ear canal. Although these hairs usually heal, some damages can be permanent, especially when you subject yourself to more loud noises in the next few days. If you have experienced this, then it is time to schedule a trip with a hearing specialist. This is a very apparent sign of hearing loss.
Did the tinnitus start during the height of any illness? Many people feel a persistent ringing especially during bouts of cold and fever. This is due to an imbalance of the fluid-build up within the ear canal. However, as soon as the person overcomes the illness, the ringing usually stops. In case you did come down with any form of ailment, but the tinnitus still lingered after a couple of days, then this is an indication of possible ear infection. A trip to your health care provider should help you overcome the infection and keep the ringing sensations at bay.
Another point to consider is that some medicines also affect the fluid build up within the ear canal. These medicines, particularly aspirin and aspirin based medications, can give you symptoms similar to ear infections. Ask your health care provider about possible substitute medications to tone down the ringing sensation in your ears.