Questions to Ask Your Audiologist About Tinnitus

Do you hear sounds that aren’t actually there? And the funny thing is, no one else can hear these sounds. These noises may be a buzzing, a whistling or even a piece of music.

While there are no such noises, they’ll seem very real indeed. If you’re faced with this situation, you likely have tinnitus. This is a condition where you hear noises from inside the ear instead of external sources.

If you believe you’ve developed symptoms of tinnitus, don’t fret. Some interesting facts should help you calm your nerves:

• In the United States, roughly 15% of all adults have tinnitus.
• Often, there’s no specific reason why some people develop tinnitus.
• For some, tinnitus may be caused by noise-induced hearing loss.
• Ordinarily, tinnitus is caused by some type of physical or mental change, but it’s not necessarily related to the ear.

The best way out of this condition is to seek an audience with an audiologist. And if you want to understand tinnitus better, there are some notable questions that you should ask your audiologist.

What causes tinnitus? 

Tinnitus can be traced back to numerous causes, but it’s often a symptom of a preexisting condition. Nevertheless, this condition's causes can range from injuries, high blood pressure, ototoxic drugs to stress, depression and exposure to loud noise.  

What are the usual symptoms?

With tinnitus, you can experience normal to not-so-normal symptoms. If you have the usual symptoms, you’re probably hearing hissing, ringing, or roaring noises in your ear.

However, there are instances when you may be experiencing unusual symptoms. A case in point is when you have a bit of blood coming from your ears.

Is tinnitus curable? 

Your audiologist will likely tell you that there’s no immediate cure for tinnitus. More often than not, this condition may last from three months to one year. But if it persists beyond this period, it might be almost certain that this condition is permanent.

What’s more, your audiologist will probably confide in you that tinnitus can only turn out to be permanent if it’s caused by hearing loss.

What are the treatment options? 

It’s possible to treat tinnitus using a wide range of tinnitus treatment options. As for you, the treatment option recommended by the audiologist will depend heavily on the nature of your case. The options may range from the use of hearing aids and tinnitus training therapy to change of lifestyle habits like quitting drinking or smoking.  

Masking devices are top among the best options for anyone living with this condition. This treatment option helps to minimize tinnitus by producing white noise. This noise comes in handy because it blocks out unusual sounds.

Is tinnitus a symptom for hearing loss?

There’s a possibility that your tinnitus is a catalyst for hearing loss, but this is often not the case with many people. After all, tinnitus is an entirely different condition. But your audiologist can hardly tell if you’re experiencing any level of hearing loss without them performing a hearing test.

While it’s highly unlikely that tinnitus has anything to do with hearing loss, this condition tends to make hearing more difficult. As such, you’re better off using hearing aids to mask the noise caused by this condition.

No one intends that they’ll be diagnosed with tinnitus, but if you happen to have this condition, there’s often a way out. By asking your audiologist some vital questions, you’ll get to know what you’re dealing with and the most probable solution.