Hearing ringing sound in the ear? It could be a sign of these health problems

Tinnitus or ringing sound in the ear is just a symptom that can be an indicator of a more complex/ serious underlying ailment. It is thus mandatory to rule out or diagnose the condition at the earliest to avoid future complications. Some of the serious underlying ailments are as follows –

One of the major causes of hearing ringing sounds may be the development of a cranial tumor. Acoustic Neuroma is a medical term for benign tumors that develop in the nerves that connect the ears to the brain. Due to disrupted signals and blood flow, one may hear ringing sounds, have difficulty in balancing, or have hearing loss.

Dr. Anish Gupta, Lead consultant - ENT, CK Birla Hospital, Gurugram says, “Sometimes the abnormal growth of the bone in the middle ear leads to hearing loss, and tinnitus may be the earliest symptom to look out for.”

If one often experiences a ringing sound, this may also be due to the fact that the blood may exert excess pressure on the walls of the blood vessels which can be concluded that the person may have ailments like hypertension, hardening of the blood vessels/ plaque build-up (atherosclerosis), bulging of the blood vessels, Arterio-venous Malformations or aneurysms.

Though hyperthyroidism is rare and the chances of affecting the auditory system are less. But thyroxine assists in the normal development of the auditory system and when the body produces less than the required amount of thyroxine, it also affects the hearing ability. Various studies have shown that at least 50% of those suffering from hypothyroidism experience tinnitus and may lose their hearing ability if timely measures are not taken.

“Since iron helps in transporting the oxygenated blood throughout the body, a deficiency in iron causes the arteries to pump harder. In such cases, the heart functions harder and those affected are able to hear the heartbeat or their pulse. This type is called pulsatile tinnitus. Such people are also vulnerable to heart-related ailments,” says Dr. Gupta.