The Why’s And How’s Behind Tinnitus With Temporal Headache: REVEALED
Get answers to your questions about tinnitus with temporal headache in this article that tries to lay down all the factors revealed in an in-depth study
Even though tinnitus and headache are usually considered to have stemmed from stress, when the ringing in the ear can be related to temporal headache which originates from a complex bone structure located above the ear in the skull and termed as the temporal bone that houses the organ responsible for hearing, the topic comes under more thorough investigation and study.
Here are some of the factors that are known to cause the condition that are often referred to as temporal headache.
Why temporal headache and tinnitus occurs?
I. Stress has always been considered as the prime contributory factor that gives rise to tinnitus with headache originating from temporal bony structure within the skull which houses the hearing organ. But does that mean that everyone has tinnitus with temporal headache since contemporary lifestyle is almost hundred percent stressful. In actual reality it is not so because many people now know how to control stress by doing yoga or by practicing the principle of detachment before being affected by stress related disorders. II. Insomnia or continued sleep deprivation is also responsible for tinnitus that comes with temporal headache although there is a slight twist in the tale. Leaving aside the debacle that fails to determine whether insomnia causes tinnitus or tinnitus causes insomnia let us take an unbiased view of the topic. According to David Baguley, PhD, Head of Audiology at Cambridge University Hospitals and Professional Adviser to the British Tinnitus Association, people go to bed when they are surrounded by quiet whereas the same quietness makes that ‘tinnitus noise’ sharper for the affected person, turning him/her more agile and alert, preventing him/her from falling asleep. Nevertheless, continued lack of sleep can lead to many disorders including tinnitus with or without temporal headache. III. Subarachnoid hemorrhage in which bleeding occurs in the subarachnoid space that remains inside the brain usually has symptoms of tinnitus with temporal headache. This may happen unexpectedly or may be caused due to cerebral aneurysm and its rupture. Severe injury to head during car crash also causes brain hemorrhage with the surviving patient complaining of acute tinnitus with temporal headache. IV. Lumber puncture made for drawing of cerebrospinal fluid usually results in tinnitus with temporal headache though it takes around twelve hours for pain to set in.
Studies have further shown that a great majority of Americans also suffer from tinnitus with chronic shoulder & neck pain, apart from the usual temporal headache and accompanying discomfort. However, the true picture of tinnitus with temporal headache may reveal many untold stories on the topic. Such as buzzing, ringing and crackling sounds on both ears - actually these are quite common symptoms of tinnitus.
Tinnitus related to Temporal headache - an in-depth study
Contrary to popular belief, stress is no more considered to be the only factor that gives rise to tinnitus with accompanying discomfort. In-depth studies have revealed that Temperomandibular Disorder that is also known as TMD is often found responsible for tinnitus with temporal headache in many cases. What is more, headache is also linked with tinnitus is not a disease condition but is a key symptom of the principal disorder and that once the TMD is cured, the symptom will disappear on its own. The TMD, nevertheless, is caused by some other factor which is clinically termed as Temporomandibular Joint or TMJ or Disorder.
The TMJ (relating to the jaw joint), by the way is located just a couple of inches lower than the ear and the muscles, ligaments, tendrils and nerve endings that interconnect both the organs can supply and receive impulses without any interference from other organs. As a result, any wrong or inappropriate signal from the TMJ can transmit a corresponding wrong or inappropriate message to the ear drum, thus causing abnormal noise and giving rise to tinnitus. On top of that, the ligament (Pinto’s ligament, to be precise) that connects TMJ with the middle ear bone structures can transfer any stress related event from the TMJ to the middle ear resulting in distortions in the form of unusual sound effects. Termed as ‘Otomandibular Syndrome’ this is being observed by Harold Arlan, MD, who is the Assistant Clinical Professor in Otolaryngology Surgery at the Rudkers Medical School and at Medicine College and Dentistry of New Jersey.
Tinnitus with temporal headache can also be caused by ototoxic medications like antibiotics that include erythromycin, aminoglycosides, vancomycin as well as chemotherapy agents, loop diuretics and quinine derivatives. The toxicity inherent in these drugs probably cause irritation within the temporal bone structure in skull, creating ache and related discomfort.
However, the whole thing boils down to the simple fact that the temporal headache is a symptom of tinnitus while tinnitus itself is a symptom of a disease condition with several underlying causative factors. When these are systematically unearthed and eliminated, all the symptoms will automatically go away. And for achieving this there is no other way left to us than opting for holistic mode of treatment which may mean total change of lifestyle.