Diagnosed with Idiopathic Tinnitus — Tinnitus with No Obvious Cause

Went to see an ENT consultant a couple of days ago and have had my diagnosis letter describing my tinnitus as 'Idiopathic' which I just assume means tinnitus with no obvious cause.

I had assumed it was linked to sinus problems due to problems with reduced sense of smell (varies quite a lot), but he did not think this was the cause. I was a bit worried about possible acoustic neuroma as tinnitus worse on left than right, but the audiogram came out normal so he did not think I had this.

He has referred me for hearing therapist (NHS) which he thinks might help.

 

You should also go see an allergist. I've posted a separate thread on this subject with some suggestions.

 

I wouldn't be pleased with that diagnosis. It's one thing to have tinnitus but be called an idiot too by the medical community?
Seems to be beyond the pale.

 

Some of these ENT do not look very hard for the cause. Far and away, noise is the most common cause of tinnitus.

Work noise exposure? Concert and shows? Headphone use? Gym classes? Gun shooting? Power tools? Subways? Etc,etc.

 

All except headphone use. Headphones can make a blind man see and a lame man run a marathon.

 

Did your ENT consultant follow the diagnosis flowchart to get to that conclusion?

 

Idiopathic Tinnitus: Going to extremely loud concerts, riding around in vehicles with ground shaking stereo speakers. Yeah, sounds about right to me.