/?020710" Why Do I Have Buzzing In My Ears
What is Tinnitus and what causes it?
Picture standing in an open field in late August-the sounds of tiny insects, especially crickets fill your head. But it's mid-February and you hear them just the same. Medical science calls this affliction, Tinnitus (tin-EYE-tus)-ringing, buzzing sounds I hear every waking moment.Why Do I Have Buzzing In My Ears
The Mayo Clinic describes Tinnitus as inner ear cell damage.Tiny, delicate hairs in your inner ear move in relation to the pressure of sound waves. This triggers ear cells to release an electrical signal through a nerve from your ear (auditory nerve) to your brain. Your brain interprets these signals as sound. If the hairs inside your inner ear are bent or broken, they can "leak" random electrical impulses to your brain, causing tinnitus.
Many people suffer from tinnitus as a natural result of aging. A study released by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) puts most of the blame for tinnitus on cochlear damage (74.8%), while other factors contribute to the problem such as: ear infections, explosions (mainly firearms) and brief bursts of noise (loud music, diesel truck engines, etc.) and bodily injuries like whiplash.
Other contributing sources of tinnitus can be certain medications, especially aspirin taken on a daily basis by many patients with heart disease. /?020710" Why Do I Have Buzzing In My Ears
The Source of My Tinnitus
I'm convinced that the source of my tinnitus began many years ago in the form of cochlear damage resulting from two activities:
1. Flying-In 1962 I began taking flying lessons in small airplanes with very noisy engines. In those days we didn't have noise-cancelling earphones. We turned up the volume on the radio so it was louder than the roar of the engine. It wasn't until some time in the 1980s that noise-cancelling headsets became the norm.
2. Also in the 1960s I became a police officer. At least twice a year I had to qualify with a handgun--.38 caliber at first then.357 magnum. During that eight year period I fired well over 1000 rounds of pistol and shotgun ammunition. Our firearms instructors of that era taught us that since we didn't wear ear protection while we worked our shifts, we should not rely on it while at the firing range. It wasn't until FBI instructors saw the folly in this method of teaching and began wearing ear protection, that the rest of us followed suit.
By the time I reached age 50 I had a slight hearing loss that just got progressively worse. I don't remember exactly when the tinnitus began-but I would guess it's been nearly 15-20 years ago.
Every doctor I mentioned the problem to indicated that the damage had been done and I would just have to live with it. And until recently I have done just that. /?020710" Why Do I Have Buzzing In My Ears
