6 ms·

Chronic pain and tinnitus may share a common source

32 points by buserror 11y ago

buserror 11y ago
I've had a 'frequency' in my left ear for YEARS. It's not painful, and doesn't seem to affect my hearing or ability to concentrate (I learned to 'blank' it) but it's definitely 'there'. Of course I know there's no real fix, but having studies trying to find one is nice!
- WorldMaker 11y ago
  The correlation mentioned in this article is interesting. Yes, statistically some 30% or so of us in the world have tinnitus of one form or another, but it's not really life threatening and its annoyance is such that it often doesn't get studied. The idea that tinnitus has anything in association, much less potentially things in common, with other lasting conditions like chronic pain, chronic anxiety, and depression, that certainly lends hope that maybe it will get studied a bit more and possibly more likely someone might cure it someday.
- zimpenfish 11y ago
  There has been research on "notched audio" to reduce tinnitus which seems hopeful, eg. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3002906/pdf/nihms-256457.pdf http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3002906/pdf/nihm... And there are people who will auto-notch your music (for a fee, natch), eg. http://www.audionotch.com http://www.audionotch.com
- dazc 11y ago
  Do you notice any difference when you are stressed or anxious? My tinnitus is fairly mild but when I'm stressed it seems much worse. I'm also very sensitive to certain noises - a single dog bark, for instance, can leave me feeling very anxious for a period of an hour or more.
  - derefr 11y ago
    Anecdote: I get tinnitus—just random short bursts of it, the ringing appearing from nowhere and lasting about a minute. I also have ADHD, but wasn't aware of that for the longest time. When I started treatment for it, the tinnitus went away. If I stop taking my ADHD medication for any length of time, the random bursts of tinnitus-noise come back. I mention this because an interesting thing about the dopaminergic system is that stress makes dopamine run out faster, because your body needs to convert it into adrenaline. Tyrosine, a dopamine precursor nutrient, is often marketed in pill form as "for coping with stress, lack of sleep, or prolonged cold", because these are all things that make you use up dopamine. The question being: is tinnitus symptomatic of low dopamine? There are alternate explanations, of course. ADHD medications usually have the side-effect of being vasoconstrictors; vasoconstrictors, along with their effect on the diameter of your circulatory system, also seem to fiddle with the diameter of your lymph channels and sinuses, including your ear canal. Decongestant drugs (which are also vasoconstrictors) frequently carry a warning that, in rare cases, they can cause sudden and permanent deafness!
    - dazc 11y ago
      The short bursts, lasting a minute or so are reminiscent of my childhood (early teens) experience. As I got older I thought it was something I'd grown of but then in my 30's it came back. Short bursts again at first but now permanent. I think that tinnitus is one of those ailments with many causes but the low dopamine theory is an interesting one I've not come across before.
    - sitkack 11y ago
      Interesting, I also have ADHD. My tinnitus gets much worse when I am under stress like coming in bursts of 30% to 100% loudness for a minute or two.
  - buserror 11y ago
    Actually I have to say I'm very sensitive to certain noises; like lots of people talking, or kids screaming etc will drive me really mad after a certain level, it's not technically 'pain' but I really have to go away, fast when the level is passed... But it's not just that, if I hear a musician playing even so slightly off key, it's almost painful and I have to physically move away.. Same with singing... Off key xmas carols will have me running in no time :-) And it's definitely not being pedant or anything like that, it's really some bizarre reflex... And yes the level varies sometime; my assumption was that it might be linked to blood pressure, but I have no way to correlate that.
Zikes 11y ago
For anyone here that suffers from tinnitus, a relief method was posted on Reddit recently that is apparently fairly successful: https://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/3l3uri/slug/cv3474n https://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/3l3uri/slug/cv3474n
- buserror 11y ago
  Well I tried, and I didn't get a magical result like some of these guys @reddit, but it perhaps IS a bit better... I'll persevere... I owe you 10k worth of HN 'gold' :-)
- amelius 11y ago
  Did anyone try the "deep tissue massages" like one commenter on that thread suggested?
- viggity 11y ago
  what. the. fuck. I'm without words. I used to have tinnitus when I was a kids, but as far as I know, don't now. But my mom has Meniere's disease and that causes hearing loss and tinnitus so I was curious. I tried it myself and it is absolutely crazy. AFAICT, I've had a very low hum in my ears (usually thought of tinnitus as being high pitched) for a long , long time because after I do this, I can hear silence. it is fucking crazy. eager to tell my mom. thank you!
- rasz_pl 11y ago
  this WORKS!!! ..... for 1-3 minutes for me :(
PhasmaFelis 11y ago
Some tinnitus can be caused by sinus issues, and may clear up with medication. My physician inspected my nose and ears and then recommended over-the-counter pseudoephedrine, loratadine, and fluticasone, which have improved things greatly. It's certainly not the most common cause, but it might be worth a doctor visit.
amelius 11y ago
Here is another approach: [1] I'm not sure if it really works, though, or if it is safe. [1] http://www.microtransponder.com/technology/how-it-works/ http://www.microtransponder.com/technology/how-it-works/
ebt 11y ago
http://www.ata.org/ http://www.ata.org/ is an excellent resource. In particular: http://www.ata.org/understanding-facts/symptoms http://www.ata.org/understanding-facts/symptoms It's weird, I listened to the first couple of samples on my PC speakers, not loud, and the volume of my tinnitus dropped noticeably. Everything else (TV, fan, chair squeaking) sound the same.

32 points by buserror 11y ago

I've had a 'frequency' in my left ear for YEARS. It's not painful, and doesn't seem to affect my hearing or ability to concentrate (I learned to 'blank' it) but it's definitely 'there'. Of course I know there's no real fix, but having studies trying to find one is nice!

WorldMaker 11y ago
The correlation mentioned in this article is interesting. Yes, statistically some 30% or so of us in the world have tinnitus of one form or another, but it's not really life threatening and its annoyance is such that it often doesn't get studied. The idea that tinnitus has anything in association, much less potentially things in common, with other lasting conditions like chronic pain, chronic anxiety, and depression, that certainly lends hope that maybe it will get studied a bit more and possibly more likely someone might cure it someday.
zimpenfish 11y ago
There has been research on "notched audio" to reduce tinnitus which seems hopeful, eg. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3002906/pdf/nihms-256457.pdf http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3002906/pdf/nihm... And there are people who will auto-notch your music (for a fee, natch), eg. http://www.audionotch.com http://www.audionotch.com
dazc 11y ago
Do you notice any difference when you are stressed or anxious? My tinnitus is fairly mild but when I'm stressed it seems much worse. I'm also very sensitive to certain noises - a single dog bark, for instance, can leave me feeling very anxious for a period of an hour or more.
- derefr 11y ago
  Anecdote: I get tinnitus—just random short bursts of it, the ringing appearing from nowhere and lasting about a minute. I also have ADHD, but wasn't aware of that for the longest time. When I started treatment for it, the tinnitus went away. If I stop taking my ADHD medication for any length of time, the random bursts of tinnitus-noise come back. I mention this because an interesting thing about the dopaminergic system is that stress makes dopamine run out faster, because your body needs to convert it into adrenaline. Tyrosine, a dopamine precursor nutrient, is often marketed in pill form as "for coping with stress, lack of sleep, or prolonged cold", because these are all things that make you use up dopamine. The question being: is tinnitus symptomatic of low dopamine? There are alternate explanations, of course. ADHD medications usually have the side-effect of being vasoconstrictors; vasoconstrictors, along with their effect on the diameter of your circulatory system, also seem to fiddle with the diameter of your lymph channels and sinuses, including your ear canal. Decongestant drugs (which are also vasoconstrictors) frequently carry a warning that, in rare cases, they can cause sudden and permanent deafness!
  - dazc 11y ago
    The short bursts, lasting a minute or so are reminiscent of my childhood (early teens) experience. As I got older I thought it was something I'd grown of but then in my 30's it came back. Short bursts again at first but now permanent. I think that tinnitus is one of those ailments with many causes but the low dopamine theory is an interesting one I've not come across before.
  - sitkack 11y ago
    Interesting, I also have ADHD. My tinnitus gets much worse when I am under stress like coming in bursts of 30% to 100% loudness for a minute or two.
- buserror 11y ago
  Actually I have to say I'm very sensitive to certain noises; like lots of people talking, or kids screaming etc will drive me really mad after a certain level, it's not technically 'pain' but I really have to go away, fast when the level is passed... But it's not just that, if I hear a musician playing even so slightly off key, it's almost painful and I have to physically move away.. Same with singing... Off key xmas carols will have me running in no time :-) And it's definitely not being pedant or anything like that, it's really some bizarre reflex... And yes the level varies sometime; my assumption was that it might be linked to blood pressure, but I have no way to correlate that.

Zikes 11y ago

For anyone here that suffers from tinnitus, a relief method was posted on Reddit recently that is apparently fairly successful: https://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/3l3uri/slug/cv3474n https://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/3l3uri/slug/cv3474n

buserror 11y ago
Well I tried, and I didn't get a magical result like some of these guys @reddit, but it perhaps IS a bit better... I'll persevere... I owe you 10k worth of HN 'gold' :-)
amelius 11y ago
Did anyone try the "deep tissue massages" like one commenter on that thread suggested?
viggity 11y ago
what. the. fuck. I'm without words. I used to have tinnitus when I was a kids, but as far as I know, don't now. But my mom has Meniere's disease and that causes hearing loss and tinnitus so I was curious. I tried it myself and it is absolutely crazy. AFAICT, I've had a very low hum in my ears (usually thought of tinnitus as being high pitched) for a long , long time because after I do this, I can hear silence. it is fucking crazy. eager to tell my mom. thank you!
rasz_pl 11y ago
this WORKS!!! ..... for 1-3 minutes for me :(

PhasmaFelis 11y ago

Some tinnitus can be caused by sinus issues, and may clear up with medication. My physician inspected my nose and ears and then recommended over-the-counter pseudoephedrine, loratadine, and fluticasone, which have improved things greatly. It's certainly not the most common cause, but it might be worth a doctor visit.

amelius 11y ago

Here is another approach: [1] I'm not sure if it really works, though, or if it is safe. [1] http://www.microtransponder.com/technology/how-it-works/ http://www.microtransponder.com/technology/how-it-works/

ebt 11y ago

http://www.ata.org/ http://www.ata.org/ is an excellent resource. In particular: http://www.ata.org/understanding-facts/symptoms http://www.ata.org/understanding-facts/symptoms It's weird, I listened to the first couple of samples on my PC speakers, not loud, and the volume of my tinnitus dropped noticeably. Everything else (TV, fan, chair squeaking) sound the same.