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Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no actual external noise is present. While it is commonly referred to as “ringing in the ears,” tinnitus can manifest many different perceptions of sound, including buzzing, hissing, whistling, swooshing, and clicking. In some rare cases, tinnitus patients report hearing music. Tinnitus can be both an acute (temporary) condition or a chronic (ongoing) health malady.
Tinnitus affects men and women equally — about one out of every five people between the ages of 55 and 65 has experienced tinnitus to some degree. The noise can be intermittent or continuous, and can vary in loudness. It is often worse when background noise is low, so you may be most aware of it at night when you’re trying to fall asleep in a quiet room. In rare cases, the sound beats in sync with your heart (pulsatile tinnitus).
Tinnitus is not a disease but a symptom that can result from a number of underlying causes:
- Age-related hearing loss
- Exposure to loud noises
- Earwax blockage
- Changes in the ear bone
- Inner ear disorders such as Meniere’s disease
Is there a link between COVID-19 vaccines and tinnitus?
Tinnitus is the medical term for hearing sounds that are not related to an actual sound source. The most common type of tinnitus is a ringing or buzzing sound in one or both ears.
There are two types of COVID-19 vaccines: mRNA and adenovirus vector. An mRNA vaccine teaches our cells how to make a protein that triggers an immune response, which produces antibodies that protect us from getting sick if the real virus enters our bodies. An adenovirus vector vaccine uses a modified virus (one that cannot cause disease) to deliver genetic material into cells to produce proteins that trigger an immune response.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has noted some side effects after people have received coronavirus vaccines, one being tinnitus, which is listed as very rare in this report on the Moderna vaccine and this report on the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
Johnson & Johnson’s clinical trials
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is being tested in a large clinical trial in the United States and abroad. But the company has said it will not release data from its trials to the public until they are complete — a decision that has raised concerns among medical ethicists and transparency advocates that it could make it harder to assess the safety or effectiveness of the vaccine.
The company did, however, provide some additional details to The New York Times on Sunday after reporting that some people had experienced unexplained illnesses during its studies.
The company confirmed that one person had developed tinnitus, a ringing in the ears; another had a skin condition known as erythema multiforme; and 14 others had Bell’s palsy, which causes facial paralysis.
None of those conditions are believed to be related to coronavirus infection, and all of them have been seen at low rates during previous vaccine studies.
Why might COVID-19 vaccines and tinnitus be linked?
It has been reported that a small number of people who have had a COVID-19 vaccination have experienced tinnitus.
It is not currently clear why COVID-19 vaccinations may lead to tinnitus, or whether there is a link at all. However, it is possible that the vaccine may trigger an immune response in some people, which can cause inflammation around the nerves in the inner ear and lead to symptoms of tinnitus.
It is also possible that the process of getting vaccinated may lead to tinnitus. For example, some people experience an increase in blood pressure as a result of having a vaccine or stress associated with having the vaccine, and this can sometimes cause tinnitus. This is known as situational tinnitus, because it occurs in particular situations. However, situational tinnitus usually disappears after a day or two once you are no longer experiencing increased blood pressure.
Tinnitus is not normally considered to be a common side effect of any vaccine, including COVID-19 vaccines. The British Tinnitus Association (BTA) says that COVID-19 vaccines are extremely safe and that potential benefits far outweigh any risks and side effects that may occur.
Can COVID-19 cause tinnitus?
It’s unlikely that the virus itself can cause tinnitus. But there are other reasons why people who have the disease might experience this symptom.
The CDC says that early studies of people with confirmed COVID-19 indicate symptoms can appear 2 to 14 days after exposure to the virus. The most common symptoms are fever, cough, and shortness of breath.
Some patients have also reported losing their sense of smell or taste after being infected with COVID-19.
You may be experiencing tinnitus if you are hearing ringing or other noises in your ears when there are no external sounds present. There are many causes of tinnitus, the most common being noise exposure.
The coronavirus can cause mild to severe respiratory illness in both adults and children. The severity of the disease varies widely from person to person. Symptoms include fever, coughing, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. Some people also develop body aches, congestion, sore throat, headache or diarrhea.
Can COVID-19 cause tinnitus? There is no evidence that COVID-19 causes tinnitus. However, infections in the upper respiratory tract may lead to a temporary hearing loss (hypoacusis) and tinnitus.
Causes of tinnitus
There are several potential causes of tinnitus — if you’ve got it, your doctor will usually make this determination — and they vary widely by person.
The main causes are related to hearing:
Hearing loss. This is the most common cause — about half of people with tinnitus have hearing loss in one or both ears. The amount varies widely, from a mild hearing loss that doesn’t affect sound perception to a severe loss that prevents normal hearing altogether. The type of hearing loss also varies widely:
Age-related hearing loss occurs naturally as we age and is more frequently a result of genetics (you’re born with it), rather than noise exposure or other factors. But it can also be caused by loud noise from firearms, industrial machinery or power tools; loud music; earplugs; or even just being around too much noise for too long.
When to see a doctor
Most tinnitus lasts only a few minutes at a time. If you have tinnitus that persists for more than six months, you should see an audiologist or hearing specialist for evaluation. If you have any of the following problems along with tinnitus, you may also want to see your doctor:
- Ear pain or drainage from your ear.
- Hearing loss, particularly if it is sudden.
- Facial paralysis (a single drooping eyelid or the entire side of your face).
- Dizziness or loss of balance not explained by another condition.
- Head injury resulting in unconsciousness for more than 5 minutes.
Does tinnitus go away?
Tinnitus can disappear by itself, but it can also be a sign of a more serious illness. The ringing in your ears may be a one-time irritation, or it can be an ongoing problem that needs ongoing treatment.
It’s possible that tinnitus could go away in just a few days or weeks. It depends on the cause and the severity of your symptoms.
Takeaway
Some people report tinnitus after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, although it appears to be very rare. More research is needed to fully understand the link.
At this time, there isn’t enough evidence showing that tinnitus is caused by COVID-19 vaccines. Serious side effects of COVID-19 are very rare.
Getting vaccinated is an effective way to protect yourself and others from developing COVID-19.