Have you ever experienced a strange and unusual sensation of ringing or buzzing in your ears? If so, then you’ve probably searched for the source without success. Or, you may have been at a rock concert, or at an airport, or another location with loud noises and experienced these sensations there. If you have had this ringing in the ears more than once, without really knowing why, then you probably have what we call tinnitus. This article will outline the causes of this ringing in the ears and how it works.

The Inner Ear

Before we go further, though, you need to have a good understanding of your ear so you can comprehend what causes this ringing in the ears. The ear is a very complicated system of organs with sensors that are designed to pick up sound. When a sound wave is detected, it goes through the inner ear canal into, appropriately, the inner ear. The cochlea – a shell-like organ filled with liquid and delicate hair cells – is inside the inner ear. When the wave hits the cochlea, it vibrates those hairs and sends signals into your brain. This is how we interpret sound.

The Causes of Ringing in the Ears

The inner ear is very delicate and the hair strands located on the cochlea are very sensitive. Damage to these hair strands and the inner ear primarily causes these loud ringing sounds. These days loud music is the biggest culprit that can damage the years and earlier on loud construction would cause damage to the inner ear. Hearing loud music or other loud noises for a short time span can cause temporary ringing sounds in the ear but when a person is constantly exposed to a loud sound that is when the situation becomes serious. Constant exposure to loud sounds can cause permanent damage such as hear loss.

Other possible causes include medical conditions. Sinus infections and ear infections can both cause ringing in the ears. This is because your senses are interconnected in a sensory network, and one illness – like a cold – will hit all of your senses at once. Many of you, for this reason, probably have had ringing in the ears while sick. The pressure caused by inflammation in your head due to sickness can damage the hair cells in your ear. Stress is also a major factor because it can wreak havoc with your body’s sensory capabilities. If you have been stressed out, and have had ringing in the ears, then you know what this means for you.

If left alone, ringing in the ears can be serious. If these symptoms plague you and they occur more than a few times here and there, then you probably have had damage to your cochlea. If this is the case, then you should see a doctor as soon as possible. Even if you haven’t had damage, though, it is still good to know this information in case it occurs in your own life.