Are you experiencing ringing in your ears that’s driving you mad? Discover whether your tinnitus is inherited or what the cause might be.
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 word tinnitus translates to “ringing like a bell.”
How will tinnitus impact my daily living?
Tinnitus can be frustrating and can disrupt intimate interactions. It’s not a disease in and of itself, but it’s a symptom of other conditions or circumstances in your life including hearing loss or damage. Your concentration can be seriously disrupted when you begin to hear tinnitus in one or both ears.
Regardless of the way in which you’re experiencing tinnitus, it’s always disruptive. Sleep loss, anxiety, and even depression can also be triggered by tinnitus symptoms.
What are the causes of tinnitus?
Tinnitus can be persistent or temporary. Temporary varieties of tinnitus are normally caused by extended exposure to loud noises, such as a rock concert. There are a few medical conditions that tend to go hand-in-hand with tinnitus.
A few of the conditions that may play host to tinnitus include:
- Buildup of excessive earwax
- Depression or anxiety
- Trauma to the neck or head
- Meniere’s Disease
- Bruxism, more commonly referred to as teeth grinding caused by temporomandibular joint problems, or TMJ disorder
- A benign tumor, called acoustic neuroma, forms on cranial nerve
- Changes in the structure of the ear bone
- Injuries that impact nerves of the ear
- Inner ear cell damage and irritation of the delicate hairs used to conduct sound, causing arbitrary transmissions of sound to your brain
- Age-related hearing loss
- Exposure to loud noise for sustained time periods
- Several medications
- Infection of the inner ear
Could I have inherited this ringing in my ears from my parents?
Tinnitus isn’t directly hereditary. 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 caused by irregular bone growth that can be passed down through family lines. Here are some other conditions you may have inherited that can result in tinnitus:
- Being prone to inner ear infections or wax build-up
- Specific diseases
- Being predisposed to depression or anxiety
You can’t directly inherit tinnitus, but there are conditions that become breeding grounds for tinnitus which you could 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 evaluate your hearing.
