Crackling in your ear? A disorder known as tinnitus can bring about many different noises in your ears including whooshing, buzzing, ringing, and crackling. Here is some essential information.
Where is that crackling, buzzing, or ringing sound coming from? If you use hearing aids, it can mean that they require adjustment or aren’t fitted correctly. For everybody else, tinnitus may be the answer.
Although we typically think of our ears in terms of what we see on the outside, there’s more than meets the eye – or in this case, the ear. Here’s what it could mean when some of these more common sounds are playing in your ears.
I’m Hearing a Snap, Crackle, And Pop in my Ears But What’s The Cause?
We can tell you this – it’s not Rice Krispies. It isn’t uncommon to hear a popping or crackling sound when the pressure in your ear changes. This can happen because you had an altitude change, went underwater, or simply yawned. A small part of your ear named the eustachian tube is the source of these noises. When these mucus lined passages open up to neutralize the air pressure, fluid, and air move causing these noises to manifest.
Sometimes, like when you’re dealing with allergies, a cold, or an ear infection, an overabundance of mucus in your system can clog up the eustachian tubes and interfere with what is ordinarily an automatic process (don’t forget, that there’s a connection between your ears, throat, and nose). In extreme cases where decongestant sprays, chicken soup, or antibiotics don’t provide relief, a blockage may call for medical treatment such as surgery.
What Does it Mean When I Hear Vibrations in My Ear?
Vibrations in the ear are sometimes a telling indication of tinnitus. Tinnitus is the technical term for a disorder that causes people to hear noises that have no external cause, like vibrations, inside of the ear. Most individuals will refer to it as a ringing in the ears and it manifests across the spectrum, from barely there to debilitating.
What Should I do About Sounds in my Ear
Again, if you use hearing aids, you should check those first. There might be numerous reasons that you would hear these noises: your batteries are running low, the hearing aids aren’t correctly seated in your ears, the volume is too loud, or your hair is rubbing up against it. If you don’t have hearing aids, excessive earwax may be the problem.
It makes sense that excessive wax could make it hard to hear and cause irritation or even inner ear infections, but how can earwax cause a noise? If it is touching your eardrum, it can actually inhibit the eardrum’s ability to function, which is what causes the buzzing or ringing. The good news is, earwax issues are easily fixed.
If you’re hearing odd noises, give us a call. We can examine your hearing aid to make sure it’s functioning correctly.
