Although earwax has its benefits, it also has its downsides, especially when it is left unattended and builds up in the ear. One of the suspected consequences of having too much earwax is tinnitus, a disturbing condition that feels irritating and could lead to hearing loss.
However, understanding the full effects of excessive ear wax can help you appreciate the importance of earwax removal in safeguarding your hearing health.
What is Tinnitus?
If you suspect you have tinnitus, the first thing you should know is that it is not a disease. However, it is a sound within the mind that is triggered by various conditions or other external factors that can include loud noises, trauma, and hearing loss.
Tinnitus interrupts how sound enters and is interpreted by the mind, and the extent of this interruption varies depending on the health conditions that cause it. Tinnitus may also be caused by the transmission of sound within different areas of the house.
Understanding Tinnitus
Tinnitus is an imaginary sound that is sometimes accompanied by hearing loss, which is why it is essential to understand its cause. People suffering from tinnitus can experience different sounds in their ears. Tinnitus can affect one or both ears and cause severe disturbance to a person’s quality of life.
Although the ultimate cause of tinnitus cannot be identified, it is associated with various factors such as:
- Hearing loss: One of the most significant causes of tinnitus is hearing problems, which can be caused by a myriad of things, from trauma to ear infections.
- Exposure to loud noises: Excessively loud noises can damage the hair cells inside the ear, subsequently leading to tinnitus. A commonly used solution to protect the ears is customised earplugs, which reduce noise exposure and avoid damage.
- Specific medications: Certain medications can cause tinnitus as a side effect.
- Ear infections: When you have severe ear infections, you might experience tinnitus. This is one of the most common causes of tinnitus.
- Head injuries: An injury can damage the auditory system and result in tinnitus.
Can the Buildup of Earwax Cause Tinnitus?
There is no doubt that various factors can cause tinnitus, including head trauma. But can earwax also cause tinnitus?
The middle ear consists of a long tube known as the ear canal. It stretches from the side of your head into the skull, into your eardrum, and into a collection of other bones and structures that help with hearing.
To process sound, the eardrum absorbs vibrations that trigger your other ear structures to help you perceive sounds. Earwax typically forms along the ear canal and helps protect the ear canal and eardrum from damage from external substances.
However, some habits, like cleaning out your ears with cotton swabs or wearing earphones for prolonged periods, can cause earwax impaction. When earwax builds up deep inside the ear canal and causes blockage, it causes ear wax impaction.
The impaction can become severe enough to push on your eardrum or stop it from vibrating as it should. When this happens, you can start hearing "phantom" noises like hissing or ringing, which indicates tinnitus.
However, this is not the only effect of earwax impaction. Other effects you may experience along with tinnitus include:
- Muffling loud sounds or difficulty hearing quieter sounds
- Feeling of ear pressure or ear clogging
The Connection Between Earwax and Tinnitus
Although it is not the root cause in all cases, earwax can contribute to tinnitus. Here is how earwax can contribute to tinnitus:
- Blockage in the ear canal: Earwax buildup can partially or entirely block the ear canal and interfere with sound wave transmission to the inner ear. The disruption can lead to a ringing or buzzing as the brain interprets the altered sound signals.
- Increased pressure in the ear canal: Wax buildup can also lead to an increase in pressure within the ear canal, which can impact the eardrum and inner ear structures and trigger tinnitus symptoms.
- Irritation of the ear canal: Excessive earwax can irritate the delicate skin lining in the ear canal, which can lead to tinnitus as a secondary symptom.
Symptoms of Earwax Impaction
Before you can make the connection between earwax and tinnitus, you need to know if you actually have earwax impaction. Besides tinnitus, if you have earwax impaction, you may experience other effects, such as:
- Pain or irritation
- Dizziness
- Blocked sensation
- Itchiness
- Hearing loss
Even with these symptoms, it is important to see an audiologist or consult a health professional. You should not be tempted to use a cotton bud or bobby pin to remove the ear wax yourself. This might worsen the situation by further pushing the wax down the ear canal or perforating the ear drum, which could make matters worse for you.
Instead, you should have the impacted earwax removed safely through methods such as micro suction earwax removal, which is safe and effective and will not damage the ear.
During your visit for earwax removal, you can also set up a hearing test to check for other causes of tinnitus and ensure the internal structures of the ear are healthy and undamaged.
How Do You Know If Earwax is Causing Tinnitus?
Various factors can contribute to tinnitus, and knowing whether your earwax is the reason can help you follow up with appropriate medical treatment.
Removing excess earwax should help reduce the sensation or ringing that you experience with tinnitus. However, if you still have the ringing in your ears after clearing the earwax out of your ear canal, something else could be causing the tinnitus, such as:
- An ear infection
- Exposure to loud noise or music for an extended period
- Normal hearing loss from aging
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Injuries to your head and neck
- Small tumours or growths in the ear
Treatment and Prevention
The best and safest approach is to remove earwax buildup if it is the potential cause. These methods may reduce obstruction and provide relief in some cases. While there is no cure for tinnitus, treating the direct symptom can control and achieve the most favourable quality of life. The treatment can include:
- Removal of earwax: The first step in treating tinnitus is checking for earwax buildup and having the wax professionally removed. We use micro-suction ear wax removal to safely remove the buildup, reduce the pressure, and restore normal hearing.
- Sound therapy: If the underlying cause of tinnitus is exposure to loud noises, exposure to low-level background sounds can cause the perception of tinnitus.
- Hearing aids: We can also help you fit customised hearing aids to amplify external sounds, which can help make tinnitus less noticeable.
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy: In cases of excessive and overwhelming tinnitus, cognitive-behavioral therapy can help individuals cope with the condition's emotional and psychological impact.
If you're experiencing any tinnitus symptoms, you should see a professional audiologist for a hearing test. The test will include an otoscopy to assess the physical condition of the ear and check for impacted wax.
How to Prevent Excessive Earwax Buildup
Because earwax can contribute to tinnitus and is one of the more common reasons for tinnitus, avoiding excessive earwax is one of the tips you can use to avoid tinnitus:
- Avoid inserting objects in your ears: Avoid inserting objects like cotton swabs, bobby pins, and other objects that can push earwax deeper into the ear canal, causing impaction.
- Let your ears dry naturally: It is important to let your ears dry naturally and avoid excessive use of cotton swabs or vigorous drying of the ears after swimming, which can remove essential earwax and disrupt natural production. This will also prevent overproduction, which can lead to impaction.
- Dietary changes: Some people find that reducing their intake of processed foods, fruits, and vegetables can contribute to healthier earwax production.
Visiting our clinic for earwax removal is crucial to alleviating the symptoms of tinnitus. Suppose your tinnitus condition is severe and significantly impacting your life. In that case, if you have sudden hearing loss or are experiencing pain or discomfort, you should consider visiting our clinic for a hearing test and diagnosis to ensure you get the best results and appropriate treatment that could potentially save your hearing ability.