Tinnitus has no precise definition because the feeling is very subjective. Each will employ its own images to describe it: flowing water, crickets, distant plant, pressure cooker, etc.. Sometimes tinnitus is attenuated during the night, sometimes the opposite. Sometimes ear tinnitus touch one ear, sometimes both. The intensity, it also varies among individuals.

The doctors are also very helpless. And for good reason, that feeling only a few decibels of sound is not identifiable or quantifiable. Only the patient can describe and quantify.

However, if it was thought that these were hallucinations, tinnitus probably due to psychological problems, we now know that tinnitus originates in the auditory pathways. Most often it is due to a cochlear lesion, and results from the production of an aberrant nerve signals from the brain and interpreted as sound. In fact, any injury to the ear (outer, middle or internal) is likely to cause tinnitus: ear, wax, presbycusis ...

What people are affected by tinnitus?

15% of the adult population is affected. Tinnitus affects mostly people over 60 years and are sometimes accompanied by a slight hearing loss. Either they are a sign of pathology of the auditory system, or they accidentally appear after acoustic trauma.

At the age of 40, they are mainly due to high sound exposure during concerts and parties in nightclubs, or even the abuse of players. Young adults are also increasingly concerned. Some professions that require the use of noisy machines are also more affected. Still others, tinnitus appear to result from psychological trauma.

Whatever the cause of tinnitus, they are generally unpleasant, even unbearable. And yet, few people think to consult an ENT.

How to relieve tinnitus?

If there is no perfect treatment, however there are different therapeutic approaches:

"Forget the tinnitus. The first solution is to learn to integrate the tinnitus in his life thanks to neurobiological processes (habituation). Objective: to forget little by little and eventually no longer hear.

"The first few months, certain medications (vasodilators, and peripheral oxygenators) are useful.

"Prosthesis: when hearing loss is associated, prostheses can decrease the sensation of tinnitus. That makes sense, when you hear sounds more "normal", it is becoming less intense tinnitus.

"The cognitive behavioral and psychological therapies may significantly reduce the gene in 70% of cases.

"Alternative medicine: including relaxation techniques can be of great help.

Anyway, if you hear unusual noises in the absence of sound stimulation, do not wait, see an ENT.

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