Pulsatile Tinnitus Symptoms

Of the pulsatile tinnitus symptoms, being able to hear an ear noise that beats in time with the your heartbeat is the most common. Usually, the sound that you hear can be in the form of a low-pitched booming or thumping, or a high-pitched clicking noise. It may also come as a rougher blowing noise that is coincidental with respiration.

The ringing in the ear sound that a sufferer hears relating to the condition is usually associated with what caused it. For instance, a rapid clicking sensation is associated with the contractions of the middle ear and palatal muscles while a low humming can be a result of venous blood flow.

If you experience any of the pulsatile tinnitus symptoms, go visit your doctor as soon as you can. It is because the presence of the unwanted noise can mean that you are suffering from a particular medical condition, which can most likely be a circulatory problem. You may undergo a series of tests, and techniques like Magnetic Resonance Angiography (MRA), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), ultrasound, CT scan, and Carotid Artery Ultrasonography can be utilized in determining the source of the unwanted sound.

Its most common causes include glomus (globe-shaped) tumor, hypertension, abnormality of the vein or artery, and heart murmur. Moreover, its other potential causes include:

• Benign Intracranial Hypertension (BIH)
• Arteriovenous Malformations (AVMs)
• Twisted Arteries
• Atherosclerotic Carotid Artery Disease
• Intracranial Vascular Lesions
• Vascular tumors in the middle ear
• Middle ear effusion
• Chronic inflammation or infection in the middle ear

You might have observed that most of the causes have something to do with blood flow. What happens is that when the blood vessel is narrower than normal, a localized increase in blood flow takes place. As a result, the adjacent blood vessels have to carry extra blood, thus creating noise. Another example is that when you are suffering from atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries, your blood vessels become narrow, which prevents blood from flowing easily. Thus, a noisy turbulent blood flow may take place.

When you have the pulsatile tinnitus symptoms, you may have to go through various symptom management methods together with multidisciplinary treatments. The treatments that you may have to go through generally depend on the root cause of the condition. Drug therapy, alternative treatments, relaxation therapy, and biological feedback are some examples of the standard methods of treatments being used.