What is Tinnitus?

Tinnitus
Clusters showing a significant effect (p < 0.05 FWE-corrected) of tinnitus in left AC (A) and right rostromedial frontal cortex (B) of tinnitus severity in left HG (C,D) and left MTG (E) in the masked SBM analyses. The yellow outlines depict the masks used to restrict the vertexwise analysis (AC for A,C,D; PFC for B; DMN for E). Blue areas correspond to a negative effect (decrease in thickness for the normal-hearing tinnitus group vs. matched controls in (A,B) decrease in area and volume with increasing tinnitus severity in (C,D) and the red areas to a positive effect (increasing thickness for increasing tinnitus severity in (E). Neuroanatomical Alterations in Tinnitus Assessed with Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. Not Altered. CC.

Tinnitus is ringing in the ears.

What is the Pathology of Tinnitus?

The pathology of tinnitus is: 

-Etiology: The cause of tinnitus is unknown, but is associated with ear injury, ear infections, medications, and age-related hearing loss.

-Pathogenesis: Unknown. 

How does Tinnitus Present?

Patients with tinnitus are typically older adults. The symptoms, features, and clinical findings associated with tinnitus include ringing in the ear. 

How is Tinnitus Diagnosed?

Tinnitus is diagnosed based on the patient’s description of the symptoms alone. 

How is Tinnitus Treated?

Tinnitus is treated by addressing the possible underlying causes which include medication assessment, treating blood pressure, and earwax removal.

What is the Prognosis of Tinnitus?

The prognosis of tinnitus is good. Most tinnitus is mild and self resolves.