Are you going mad with that tinnitus in your ears? Find out what causes tinnitus and whether you may have inherited it.
Tinnitus, what exactly is it?
A ringing, buzzing, or droning in the ears with no outside cause of the sound is a condition called tinnitus. The term tinnitus translates to “ringing like a bell.”
How will my everyday living be impacted by tinnitus?
Tinnitus can interrupt personal connections in numerous annoying ways. It’s normally an indication that you have damaged hearing or some underlying health condition and not a disease in and of itself. You may hear tinnitus in one ear or both ears and it can impede your ability to concentrate.
Regardless of the way in which you’re experiencing tinnitus, it is always disruptive. impact your sleep and even cause anxiety and depression.
What causes tinnitus?
Tinnitus can be enduring or it can come and go. Short term varieties of tinnitus are typically brought on by prolonged exposure to loud noises, like a rock concert. There are a few medical conditions that tend to go hand-in-hand with tinnitus.
A few of the circumstances that may play host to tinnitus include:
- Injuries that affect nerves of the ear
- Teeth grinding (bruxism) related to a TMJ disorder
- Exposure to loud sound for prolonged periods of time
- Inner ear cell damage and irritation of the delicate hairs used to conduct sound, causing random transmissions of sound to your brain
- Acoustic neuroma where a benign tumor forms on the cranial nerve going from the brain to the inner ear
- Inner ear infections
- The ear bone has undergone changes
- Buildup of excessive earwax
- Meniere’s Disease
- Different medications
- Hearing loss associated with aging
- Head or neck injuries
- Anxiety or depression
Could I have inherited this tinnitus from my parents?
In general, tinnitus isn’t a hereditary condition. But the symptoms can be affected by your genetics. For example, ear bone changes that can result in tinnitus can be inherited. These changes are a consequence of irregular bone growth that can be handed down through family lines. Some of the other conditions that can lead to ringing in the ear could be passed down from your parents, including:
- Being prone to inner ear infections or wax build-up
- Predisposition to anxiety or depression
- Specific diseases
You can’t directly inherit tinnitus, but there are conditions that become breeding grounds for tinnitus which you might have inherited.
If you have a history of tinnitus in your family, it’s really in your best interest to make an appointment with us so we can assess your hearing.