Tinnitus is the medical term for when patients describe hearing a noise in the absence of outside sound. This noise may be heard in one ear or the other or even “in the head.” It is typically a ringing-type noise but many different types of tinnitus exist. Tinnitus is most often related to underlying hearing loss but, in some cases, there may be another underlying cause especially in cases where tinnitus is always and only in one ear, is pulsatile or sounds like a clicking noise. Complete evaluation including physical exam and audiologic testing can help your ENT physician help you understand this sound that you may be hearing.
