Some General Questions Regarding Tinnitus

[Eren101]

I have had tinnitus for 4.5 months now and I have a few questions and was wondering what your views are.

1. I was wondering whether there is a causal connection between the degree of hearing loss and the severity of Tinnitus. I found one study that indicates a strong correlation between the two (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2954569/).

My tinnitus itself can be very loud sometimes and can change to a very soft tone. Most of the time, it is loud enough to always hear it. If I have hearing loss it's minimal, but still, my tinnitus can be very annoying and loud. Still strange that I acquired tinnitus though. Probably a genetic hearing loss in my case though I am only 26 lol. For me, no such causal connection seems to exist.

2. Is genetic hearing loss possible for one ear only? And is it possible to have a genetic hearing loss in your 20s or is it highly unlikely for genetics to be a cause when someone is that young?

3. Can sounds of 60 dB SPL cause a hearing loss if one is exposed to it for let's say 20 hours a day (most charts on the internet say no). But what is your experience?

4. What affects the loudness of your Tinnitus?

In my case, I can say that any loud sound can cause my tinnitus to spike (those sounds are not loud enough for discomfort or to get a hearing loss). Furthermore, I am depressed and I am diagnosed with it. If my mood improves greatly, my tinnitus gets softer most of the time (not always). Pretty strange.

5. Is the relative difference in hearing thresholds between the left and the right ear a factor in acquiring tinnitus?

I had a hearing test from 250 Hz to 16,000 Hz. All of my hearing thresholds were -10 to +5 dB HL which corresponds to supranormal hearing especially at 26. However, one frequency, in the left ear only, had a value of +25 dB HL. My right ear had -5 dB HL at that frequency. The T started in the left ear so I guess that little dip might be the cause though I cannot be sure as that dip might always have been there. I never did an extended high-frequency audiogram as a kid so I have nothing to compare it to.

6. How can unilateral hearing loss cause Tinnitus in the good ear?

It does not make sense to me. My tinnitus started unilaterally in my left ear only. Then it just started in the right ear as well (no acoustic trauma involved whatsoever).

7. I am getting an MRI for some issues with my eyes. The doctor said that I would get earmuffs to protect my hearing from loud sounds. Is that enough or should I take my Alpine earplugs with me and use those in combination with the earmuffs provided at the hospital?

Many thanks for the responses.

 

[Tinniger]

7)
It makes sense to provide double protection.
If Alpine ear plugs are suitable (Is there metal in them?), I don't know.
You can use normal soft foam earplugs additionally.

 

[kelpiemsp]

3) No. Absolutely not.

5) That gap is certainly indicative. But you could have lost focus, or had a plugged ear from Eustatchian Tube Dysfunction Etc. Some T researchers are beginning to postulate that the degree of slope of loss between frequencies is predictive of T. If you went from 5--5--5--25--5 that would be a predictor in the latest research.

6) The good ear works harder to compensate. I think this is called recruitment.

 

[Bill Bauer]

3. Can sounds of 60 dB SPL cause a hearing loss if one is exposed to it for let's say 20 hours a day (most charts on the internet say no). But what is your experience?

It could cause louder tinnitus, and that's what matters...

 

[kelpiemsp]

It could cause louder tinnitus, and that's what matters...

No... this is obscene.

 

[Bill Bauer]

No... this is obscene.

Encouraging people to do things that could get their T louder is, in fact, obscene.

 

[kelpiemsp]

Encouraging people to do things that could get their T louder is, in fact, obscene.

This is obscene.

 

[Bill Bauer]

I just double checked, and I see that 60 dB is "conversation at a restaurant; office." When I made my post, I thought it was "annoyingly loud to some people" (which is what 70 dB is).

The bottom line is that you want to give your ears some rest. I guess if the sound is not loud it Ought to be safe. But there is a (small) chance that never giving your ears any rest will not promote your recovery. If it is easy for you to get away from all of that constant noise, you might consider doing it.

 

[Bill Bauer]

I am thankful to @Greg Sacramento for mentioning the link below to me:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_effects_from_noise

Noise levels of 50 dB(A) at night may also increase the risk of myocardial infarction by chronically elevating cortisol production.

Approximately 35% to 40% of office workers find noise levels from 55 to 60 dB(A) extremely irritating.[1] The noise standard in Germany for mentally stressful tasks is set at 55 dB(A),[31] however, if the noise source is continuous, the threshold level for tolerability among office workers is lower than 55 dB(A).[1]

I would never have guessed!

Keep in mind, for many T sufferers, stress = tinnitus.

 

[RingerBell]

The bottom line is that you want to give your ears some rest. I guess if the sound is not loud it Ought to be safe. But there is a (small) chance that never giving your ears any rest will not promote your recovery. If it is easy for you to get away from all of that constant noise, you might consider doing it.

https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn9379-noisy-iss-may-have-damaged-astronauts-hearing

60dB(A) can be generated in many different ways, it could be conversation or it could be a room with 100 refrigerators humming and rumbling (40db(A) each).

 

[Bill Bauer]

https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn9379-noisy-iss-may-have-damaged-astronauts-hearing

Thank you for the link!

Russian news reports say that astronaut Bill McArthur and cosmonaut Valery Tokarev returned from their six-month stay aboard the ISS in April 2006 with some hearing loss.
...
By November 2005, noise levels had been lowered to between 62 to 69dB in the work area and 55 to 60dB in the sleep compartments. Astronauts on the ISS used to have to wear ear plugs all day but are now only wear them for 2 to 3 hours per work day.

Note the bolded text above.

At their peak several years ago, noise levels reached 72 to 78dB in the working area and 65 dB in the sleep stations.

NASA wasn't worried about the astronauts developing H.

And it would appear that the constant 65 dB noise Can lead to hearing loss.

Having said that, there is also

But while the primary cause of hearing loss in general is high noise levels, Buckey suggested in a 2001 paper in Aviation Space and Environmental Medicine that several other factors might contribute to the problem in space.
Elevated intracranial pressure, higher carbon dioxide levels and atmospheric contaminants may make the inner ear more sensitive to noise, he says. But there have been no studies yet to test these ideas.

 

[Eren101]

5) That gap is certainly indicative. But you could have lost focus, or had a plugged ear from Eustatchian Tube Dysfunction Etc. Some T researchers are beginning to postulate that the degree of slope of loss between frequencies is predictive of T. If you went from 5--5--5--25--5 that would be a predictor in the latest research.

The frequencies were tested with increments of 5 dB HL. So +5 dB HL represents that I can hear at least +5 dB HL but I may be able to hear +2 dB HL as well but that is never tested. I simply can not hear 0 dB HL. I might be way closer to the zero line than it may seem at first glance.

This hearing test was done in March 2018 in a hospital.

Left ear the following:

250 Hz - -5 dB HL (minus five dB HL)
500 Hz - -5 dB HL
1 kHz - -5 dB HL
2 kHz - -5 dB HL
4 kHz - 0 dB HL
8 kHz - 0 dB HL
9 kHz - +5 dB HL
10 kHz - +25 dB HL (ugly, but according to one study just good enough for no loss. According another it's loss)
11.2 kHz - +5 dB HL
12.5 kHz - 0 dB HL
14 kHz - -5 dB HL
16 kHz - -5 dB HL

Right ear as follows:

250 Hz - 0 dB HL
500 Hz - 0 dB HL
1 kHz - 0 dB HL
2 kHz - 0 dB HL
4 kHz - 0 dB HL
8 kHz - 0 dB HL
9 kHz - 0 dB HL
10 kHz - -5 dB HL
11.2 kHz - +5 dB HL
12.5 kHz - -5 dB HL
14 kHz - -10 dB HL (superhearing at this frequency lol)
16 kHz - +5 dB HL

I am pretty happy with my hearing tbh. In the end, it is what it is.

Another important note is, I also did a hearing test somewhere in a shop and there my results were different. I tested my hearing in February 2018. No loss at all but I got +10 dB HL for the 8 kHz frequency in both ears. I guess some people use different values to determine what 0 dB HL is for every frequency.

So different tests may give different results. People should keep that in mind.

On a different note, it is hard to find places where you can perform extended high-frequency audiograms. I was lucky to get one I guess.

 

[Eren101]

It could cause louder tinnitus, and that's what matters...

I agree, even noise of 50 dB SPL can trigger a T spike. Not because it's harmful to my ears or anything alike, but my T reacts to it. Even dropping a pencil can cause a T spike for me (sudden unexpected sounds have that effect on my T). It always goes back to normal though.

Given my hearing test results which I posted above, I find it strange that my T is not mild lol. I can always hear it, sometimes it's even very loud.

 

[kelpiemsp]

The frequencies were tested with increments of 5 dB HL. So +5 dB HL represents that I can hear at least +5 dB HL but I may be able to hear +2 dB HL as well but that is never tested. I simply can not hear 0 dB HL. I might be way closer to the zero line than it may seem at first glance.

This hearing test was done in March 2018 in a hospital.

Left ear the following:

250 Hz - -5 dB HL (minus five dB HL)
500 Hz - -5 dB HL
1 kHz - -5 dB HL
2 kHz - -5 dB HL
4 kHz - 0 dB HL
8 kHz - 0 dB HL
9 kHz - +5 dB HL
10 kHz - +25 dB HL (ugly, but according to one study just good enough for no loss. According another it's loss)
11.2 kHz - +5 dB HL
12.5 kHz - 0 dB HL
14 kHz - -5 dB HL
16 kHz - -5 dB HL

Right ear as follows:

250 Hz - 0 dB HL
500 Hz - 0 dB HL
1 kHz - 0 dB HL
2 kHz - 0 dB HL
4 kHz - 0 dB HL
8 kHz - 0 dB HL
9 kHz - 0 dB HL
10 kHz - -5 dB HL
11.2 kHz - +5 dB HL
12.5 kHz - -5 dB HL
14 kHz - -10 dB HL (superhearing at this frequency lol)
16 kHz - +5 dB HL

I am pretty happy with my hearing tbh. In the end, it is what it is.

Another important note is, I also did a hearing test somewhere in a shop and there my results were different. I tested my hearing in February 2018. No loss at all but I got +10 dB HL for the 8 kHz frequency in both ears. I guess some people use different values to determine what 0 dB HL is for every frequency.

So different tests may give different results. People should keep that in mind.

On a different note, it is hard to find places where you can perform extended high-frequency audiograms. I was lucky to get one I guess.

Thanks for that. I'm well aware how the tests work. Again, That large dip between frequencies is more likely to cause T. So your 10khz reading could be causing it. Is that your t frequency?

 

[Eren101]

Thanks for that. I'm well aware how the tests work. Again, That large dip between frequencies is more likely to cause T. So your 10khz reading could be causing it. Is that your t frequency?

I don't know if that is my T frequency. From what I heard in that test, I have to say no.

I never tested what my T frequency is, because the sound can change, it can be a scintillating sound and sometimes it's a really low frequency that I hear (just as annoying as a high-frequency sound). Besides, what benefit would I have in testing my T frequency? I can't cure it anyway.

The only odd thing is why T is so severe sometimes. I guess the difference of 30 dB HL [25-(-5)] between the right and left ear may be a factor in the loudness of T.

T is fading little by little though. I am not expecting it to be gone one day, but a tad softer wouldn't hurt.

Funny how life can be huh. Never had an acoustic trauma, never (not even once in my life) did I go to clubs, festivals, sports matches or any loud places for that matter. Still, end up getting T... Might be genetics, but that's hardly realistic.