Singing In the Head, Musical Hallucination

47y.o. fit, 5'7" 120 lbs. male, phd ed. Over the course of last 3 or 4 weeks getting uncontrollable singing in the head. Sounds like choir, male and female separately (singing different things but simultaneously.) Started with 2 or 3 notes, eg. "Va-room" "Va-room" repeated incessantly, or like "Guten Taaaag" repeated, etc. Now longer, unfamiliar tunes eg. singing, "You will burn in hell!" (melodic, but melancholic very rich high overtones) "You can hear us now" Signature tones are usually 2 tones "Hey Ahhh" repeated. Words are inchoate, but if I listen closely, and think I hear something, they will latch on to it and become what I think, and won't change. Sometimes, also inchoate mumbling, male & female. Louder if there is white noise source, eg. fan, A/C, air flowing from vents. Seemed to be "primed" by these external noise. Had my hearing tested in April, it is normal. Also have bilateral constant tinnitus which started in 10/2010. No other symptoms, no facial paralysis, no temp. paralysis, no vertigo. What could it be? Thank you!

[Shazia Alam, DO]

Thanks for using the forum. I am happy to address your questions, and my answer will be based on the information you provided here. Please make sure you recognize that this forum is for educational purposes only, and it does not substitute for a formal office visit with your doctor.

Without the ability to obtain a history from you and examine you, I cannot comment on a formal diagnosis or treatment plan for your symptoms. However, I will try to provide you with some information regarding this matter.

A possibility of organic cause of hallucinations are seizures.  Not all seizures have to be in the form of shaking.  These type of seizures could be arising from the auditory cortex (the area responsible for you perceiving sound) and could also be cusing the ringing in the ear.

I would recommend having a neurologist appointment and have a EEG done (brain-wave test).  Sometimes if these events are frequent, we can place you in the epilepsy monitoring unit and hook you up to the EEG and monitor you for these events.  That way we can directly correlate and actually see where these are coming from--if they are seizures indeed.  

Hope this information helps.  

[singingfatigue]

PS. From internet reading, most people w. this type of hallucination are women approx 60 or older, hard of hearing.
Also had similar thing in 05/2008 - 03/2009. CT scan w/o contrast in 03/2009 was unremarkable, possible right cerebellar venous angioma. However no clinical symptoms (no headaches except w. work related stress.) I assume it's not a tumor other I'd be dead by now. EEG (?) again in 03/2009 was normal.
Also 04/2010, vertigo of unknown cause, woke up in bed around 6am, lying still on left side, felt room start to spin. queasy and unsteady for a couple of days. never recurred.
Thank you.

[singingfatigue]

Thank you v.much doctor. Appreciate your thoughts and suggestion. Will follow up on them w. someone locally.