{"id":34333,"date":"2024-07-18T07:00:15","date_gmt":"2024-07-18T07:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/?p=34333"},"modified":"2025-10-31T18:08:27","modified_gmt":"2025-10-31T18:08:27","slug":"ears-ringing-heres-why-and-what-to-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/ears-ringing-heres-why-and-what-to-do\/","title":{"rendered":"Ears ringing? Here\u2019s why and what to do","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

Some describe it as a ringing, whooshing or hissing noise. For others, it sounds like static on a television, an electric zap or a chorus of crickets.<\/p>\n

Regardless of how it presents, tinnitus \u2014 perceiving sounds that have no external source \u2014 is frustrating, and in some cases debilitating.<\/p>\n

Tinnitus can disrupt sleep and interfere with your ability to concentrate. It\u2019s also associated with mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While there is no cure for most cases of tinnitus, there are steps you can take to minimize your perception of the sound and improve your quality of life.<\/p>\n

What causes tinnitus?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Tinnitus has several causes, and treating the underlying cause can help reduce the level of noise you\u2019re hearing.<\/p>\n

The most common cause of tinnitus is hearing loss \u2014 in fact, about 70 percent of people who have hearing loss will also have tinnitus, shares Eugene Spindler, AuD, CCC-A, an audiologist<\/a> at MultiCare ENT, Allergy & Medical Aesthetics \u2013 Covington<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most likely cause of tinnitus-related hearing loss is that the brain notices when it\u2019s not getting enough information from the ear, so it fills in those gaps by keeping itself active,\u201d he says. \u201cWe sense this activity as a sound.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another common cause of tinnitus is temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders. This joint, which lies on each side of the head, connects your jaw to your skull and allows the jaw to move. If one or both of these joints become injured \u2014 sometimes due to excessive teeth grinding or clenching, for example \u2014 it can lead to tinnitus.<\/p>\n

This is likely because the cortical homunculus, the part of the brain that processes activity from your facial and jaw muscles, overlaps with the auditory cortex, the part of the brain that processes sound.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf your cortical homunculus detects more activity than normal from the jaw or facial muscles, it naturally recruits neurons from neighboring areas, like the auditory cortex, to help process this influx of information,\u201d Spindler says. \u201cThis can lead to the perception of a sound even when there\u2019s nothing there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other causes of tinnitus:<\/p>\n