The term tinnitus (from Latin tinnire = ringing) (synonyms: ear noises; ear ringing; ear noise; pulsatile tinnitus; pulse-synchronous tinnitus; tinnitus aurium; ICD-10 H93.1: tinnitus aurium) refers to ear noises that occur permanently or temporarily (intermittently), which are perceived localized in the ear or head without an external sound source. It is often a buzzing, hissing, hissing or ringing.
The causes are very diverse, often a hearing loss is present in addition to the tinnitus. Pulse-synchronous ear noises (pulse-synchronous tinnitus) can be distinguished from idiopathic tinnitus.
Tinnitus can be subdivided into:
- Subjective tinnitus – only the affected person hears the sounds (frequent).
- Objective tinnitus – the sounds are generated in the body (eg, spasm of the tensor tympani muscle) or are also perceived by the examiner; very rare.
Furthermore, tinnitus can be divided into:
- Acute tinnitus (< 3 months existing).
- Subacute tinnitus (3 to < 12 months)
- Chronic tinnitus or chronic idiopathic tinnitus (> 12 months existing).
However, the most common form of tinnitus is intermittent tinnitus. In a representative cross-sectional study, 48% of tinnitus patients denied that they perceive the sound persistently “always every day”.
Tinnitus is one of the most common complaints in ENT practice.
Gender ratio: Men and women are equally affected.
Frequency peak: increase in risk for tinnitus up to the age of about 65 years.Chronic tinnitus can occur at any age.
The prevalence (disease frequency) for acute tinnitus is 25% of the population (in Germany). The prevalence for chronic tinnitus is 4% of all adults. Due to the increasing noise pollution during leisure time, more and more young people suffer from tinnitus. The prevalence in adolescents and those under 29 years of age is 5%.
Course and prognosis: Acute tinnitus disappears or improves on its own in up to 70% of cases. The disease is often chronic. 7-20% of sufferers feel that their quality of life is considerably impaired by the ringing in their ears. Between 1 and 5 % of the general population feel significantly to very strongly impaired by ringing in the ears.The majority of affected patients show a habituation (getting used to). The affected person should learn relaxation techniques, as these can help to alleviate the tinnitus symptoms or to be able to cope with the ringing in the ears.Further treatment measures for chronic idiopathic tinnitus should be based on the severity and comorbidities (concomitant diseases).Clinical studies show that tinnitus complaints are alleviated in the course. However, there are large interindividual differences.
Comorbidities: Tinnitus is increasingly associated with hearing and balance disorders, affective disorders (e.g., adjustment disorder; depressive episode), anxiety disorders, and reactions to severe stress and adjustment disorder (posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); insomnia/sleep disorder).
