Why Do Doctors Not Know What Causes Tinnitus?

So I’m just curious as to why doctors have no clue what causes tinnitus!

I know there has to be a reason you are hearing what you are, rather it is your brain that is causing it or your ears.

If it’s the brain they should be able to see the signals messing up with a MRI or something, if it’s your ears they should be able to see if something is wrong with the ears.

I don’t understand how it’s such mystery!

I know hearing loss can cause it which is a big factor but what about the other reasons to have it with no hearing loss as of myself.

 

because most do not care.

 

Hi I went to a support group yesterday, finally met ppl like me with T . But they had a Audiologist there .He also a professor .He was saying the where the Cochlea end and start make the connection to the brain . That part can get damage with less noise than the cochlea. Forget the three word he called it. Make me now want me more careful with noise .

 

Dorsal Cochlear Nucleus

 

That it , thanks

 

Although medical researchers do not yet know exactly how tinnitus works, it doesn't mean that they can't find a way to stop or alleviate it, with research. There will no doubt be a turning point and hopefully a cure, but how long that will take is anybody's guess.

 

I would like to add that tinnitus and tinnitus are not the same. It might therefore be difficult to find a single cause for a symptom occurring in so many facets.....

 

Hi Ed, I’m glad you’re back. I’ve made a copy of what you’ve said about habituating and keep it on my phone. T is a menace again and it helps so much to refer to your words. Eve.

 

For those without a lot of hearing loss having limited physical elements in relation to your T could see improvement. Sometimes it's not difficult for them to find cause and a way out. For me with added whiplash causing multiple diseases within my neck to become more progressive makes my situation more involved.

 

This TED talk is relevant to the discussion here if you haven't seen it. I am sure most have on this site but I will post it just in case.

Tinnitus: Ringing in the Brain | Josef...

I think it's safe to say that we do know some causes of Tinnitus. It's not that all forms of Tinnitus are unknown. The other interesting thing for me is that the nervous system and brain are so complicated. I deal with other nervous system issues that the doctors can't explain....

 

@CrystalB You raise a very fair question. I suspect technology and medicine will intersect one day in the near future to give us that answer. I would think the answer would be dependent on mapping the human brain and it's millions of neurons. This alone proves that the human brain is the most complex computer ever built!

 

Here's what's missing - $$$

 

Thanks for all the input!
Maybe in the near future they will be able to find out what could be causing it.
It’s a condition that many people has.

 

They do know what causes tinnitus
The reason I didn't kill myself when I got tinnitus is because science has a theories and working hypothesis on tinnitus and hyperacusis, unlike 20 years ago when research was completely in the dark.
Just because your local ENT or a GP doesn't know about tinnitus doesn't mean no one is researching it.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4208401/
Hearing loss equals less input from the audiotory nerve which leads higher audiotory brain functions compensating for the hearing loss by making a phantom noise. This is called the Central Main Mechanism.

There is more complexities and hypothesis within the Central Gain model but what I mentioned above about are the factual cause of tinnitus from hearing loss.

It is hypothesized that central gain can play role in hyperacusis and scientist are still learning how tinnitus alters non audiotory regions of the brain and most importantly if curing hearing loss can undo the tinnitus. But what is certain should be listed on a FAQ on this website about what causes tinnitus, so this place becomes more research instead of a TRT hubox



Alternative causes for tinnitus relating to neck and jaw problems also exist and in TMD both hearing and modulation of the auditory brain can exist.


https://www.dizziness-and-balance.com/disorders/hearing/tinnitus/cervical tinnitus.html


Direct trauma to the audiotory brain itself (TBI), or brain tumor or a horrible scenario of getting violently hit in the head with a baseball bat can also induce tinnitus.
https://patient.info/health/tinnitus-leaflet/acoustic-neuroma

Remember the most important burning question is in cases of tinnitus caused by Sensori-neural hearing loss if curing hearing loss would undo the unfavorable neuro-plasticity and the ATA has never asked that question or is holding back that information. That would kill two birds with one stone

 

It doesn't matter how much useful information exist, we still hear the total bullshit claim that "No one knows about tinnitus"
Even at the freakin turn of the 20th century scientist suspected tinnitus had to do with hearing loss.

Charles Liberman's explanation of hidden hearing loss showed how two people could have the same audiogram and different hearing results. Basically two patients can pass an 200-8000hz audiogram test, one has muffled hearing. The other hears normal and the reason why is because the audiogram is inaccurate and how ribbon synapse damage is more common then the actual cochlear hair cells dying and how this plays a major role in tinnitus and hearing loss.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378595516302507

People who had tinnitus for the past 20+ years lived in a time when there really was no research just con men and TRT
now we actually have a shot at getting treatment and we aren't damned as they were, but make no mistake these are dark times with habituation-esque therapies competing with research money (and winning) and the horrible possibility of hearing aids competing with hearing restoration in the future. Perhaps everything I am saying is the ramblings of a mentally ill person and we are hopeless, but the way I see it we are going to have to be extremely vocal as possible to the medical world if we want help.

 

yes but thats way more complicated then reversing hearing loss. So lets try reversing the root cause first before we get complex neuro science that is very far away.

While hearing restoration goes on, there still should be research on signal timing, vagus nerve stimulation, epilepsy drugs that help tinnitus. The more the merrier!