Tinnitus

[Brucergoldberg]

I have the worst tinnitus.  It seems to get worse every day.  I am hypothyroid but my TSH is within limits.  Ive had a brain scan and it came up normal.  What else could be causing this?

thank you

[Dr. A. Srivastava]

Hi, Thank you so much for your question. Tinnitus is mainly heard in ears but sometimes few persons feel that it is coming from head. Common reasons of tinnitus could be any inner ear disorder due to extreme noise or meniere’s disease, large ear wax, trauma, and due to some medications. If you are hearing continuous ringing noise, please arrange an appointment with an ENT specialist right away who will evaluate the possibilities here and can provide you further treatment. Hope this information proves helpful to you.

[selmaS]

Hi.....do u take NSAIDS for pain and inflamation....many meds can add to this  issue.....but do see ur dr about it as it may be something else in addition to ur thyroid.Are u on thyroid meds?....if u have an autoimmue thyrois issue, just looking at TSH is not enuff...ask for ur dr to test ur free T3 and freeT4 and TPO antibodies.

Good luck
"selma"

[ggreg]

Well, too much aspirin can cause tinnitus, some sort of infection in the ear can do it, and some heart problems can make that sound in the ear.  But since you've got a hypothyroid, which ANY thyroid problem will cause tinnitus as one of the major symtoms, it could very well be that your medicine isn't doing the job, despite your TSH being "within limits."  See, blood tests can sometimes be a rather faulty way of determining whether your thyroid is functioning normally, rather symptoms have to be paid attention to equally.  In general, getting the thyroid replacement meds right is tricky.  2.0 is the more accurate number that your blood panels should show, rather than some higher number, by the way, in case you and your doctor are letting a 3 or 4 be "within limits."  So, with all that said, I think your endocrinologist might consider increasing your meds a little, whilst keeping a close eye on your heartrate (I used to check mine every day at diff times, and recorded BP every doc visit), since too much can make the heart work too hard.