What Is Muscular Tinnitus?

What Is Muscular Tinnitus?

A relatively uncommon kind of tinnitus called muscular tinnitus causes noises to be heard in your middle ear as a result of spasms in your muscles.

When you experience tinnitus, you hear sounds that are not external, such as buzzing or ringing. About 10–25% of adults are affected, and it can even afflict kids.

Tinnitus typically comes in two varieties:

• Subjective or non-rhythmic: The sound is audible only to the tinnitus sufferer. The most prevalent kind is this one.
• Objective or rhythmic: Someone else might hear the sound if you have objective tinnitus. This category comprises tinnitus brought on by disorders of the blood vessels or muscles in your body. Only 1% of those who have tinnitus are affected.

Muscular tinnitus may be cured if its underlying cause is identified and addressed.

Muscular tinnitus symptoms and signs

Usually, a clicking sound is produced by muscle tinnitus.

Although each person's symptoms may differ, they may include noises that:

• fluctuate in volume and pitch
• are in one or both ears
• are either constantly present or only sporadically so
• appear to be in your head as opposed to your ears.
• a rise in volume at night or during periods of reduced outside noise
• increase in volume if there are outside sounds

Muscular tinnitus causes

Involuntary spasms or twitches of the minuscule stapedius and tensor tympani muscles in the middle ear—the region between the eardrum and inner ear—are linked to muscular tinnitus.

The movement of the bones that transfer sound waves from the atmosphere to your inner ear is managed by these two muscles. In response to loud noises, the muscles tense up. You might hear repetitive sounds like clicking if they contract rhythmically.

Who gets muscular tinnitus?

Muscular tinnitus can be brought on by a few of the following conditions:

• tenseness in your neck or jaw muscles
• degenerative conditions affecting the head or neck, as Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS) or multiple sclerosis
• palatal myoclonus, or spasms in the palate muscles
• a patulous eustachian tube, which remains open rather than closed.
• Otosclerosis is a middle ear disease that results in abnormal bone tissue regeneration.

Complications of muscular tinnitus

Because muscle tinnitus is a symptom and not a disease, the underlying cause determines the problems.

Tinnitus is rarely linked to a significant medical issue, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders.

When to contact a doctor

Consult a physician if your tinnitus:

• lasts longer than 1 week
• interferes with your ability to focus or sleep
• causes you to feel apprehensive or hopeless
• if your heartbeat is synchronised with the tinnitus sounds (pulsatile tinnitus)

If your tinnitus symptoms are sudden or interfere with your ability to hear other noises, it's imperative that you consult a physician. These are a few of the warning signs of muscle tinnitus that could point to a more serious underlying issue.

Muscular tinnitus diagnosis

Finding the underlying cause of tinnitus is the aim of a diagnosis, as it is a symptom of that ailment.

A physician may initially examine you for any potential ear canal blockage, such as an infection or buildup of earwax.

If it's not the reason, they could inquire about your medical history in order to find any illnesses or drugs that might induce tinnitus.

They might then recommend that you see an audiologist who will assess your hearing or an otolaryngologist, commonly known as an ENT physician.

A tylar surgeon will assess your head, neck, and ears. To check if it affects your tinnitus, they can ask you to move your eyes, neck, or jaw.

The otolaryngologist will typically prescribe imaging tests such as the following, which may reveal the underlying reason, if they feel you may have muscular tinnitus:

• computed tomography scan with high resolution (HRCT)
• magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
• ultrasound

Muscular tinnitus treatment

The underlying aetiology of muscle tinnitus determines the course of treatment. Without medical intervention, this kind of tinnitus may disappear on its own.

Muscle relaxant medications may be prescribed by a physician if the cause of muscular tinnitus cannot be identified or if the condition persists despite treatment.

Additional therapies and cures for tinnitus consist of:

• Sound-masking devices: These devices, which are worn like hearing aids, produce white noise that muffles tinnitus sounds.
• Tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT): When using TRT, you progressively lose awareness of tinnitus noises by donning adjustable devices that resemble hearing aids.
• Background noise: Tinnitus symptoms may subside if you listen to relaxing noises like rain or waves in the ocean.
• Stretching exercises: Regular neck stretches could aid in the relaxation of your neck muscles.

The American Tinnitus Association states that recovery from tinnitus with therapies like TRT may take three months to a year.

Surgery is rarely required unless all other options have been exhausted.

Can you prevent muscular tinnitus?

Because the reasons of muscle tinnitus vary, prevention may not be viable.

You can attempt preventing tinnitus in general by doing the following:

• using earplugs in noisy settings, such as concerts
• adjusting the earphones' or headphones' volume to a reasonable level
• taking breaks to avoid noisy environments if at all possible
• attempting to lower stress through blogging or meditation
• reducing the amount of time you spend chewing gum or using your jaw

Takeaway

Muscular tinnitus, in contrast to the majority of other forms, could disappear once the underlying cause is found and addressed. The reasons could be anything from degenerative diseases like ALS to neck strain.

See a doctor to rule out any significant underlying illnesses, especially if your tinnitus symptoms start suddenly or if the noise drowns out other sounds.