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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Humming Sound In Ears?

My 16 year old son tonight heard an odd sound suddenly in his ears and then experienced a pulsing on the left side of his head. He had me put my fingers there and I felt the pulsing as well. The experience lasted for only 3-5 minutes and then passed. Since then he feels fine but uneasy about what had just happened. Can you help us. He said the noise was a strange but defined humming.
Mon, 6 Oct 2014
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ENT Specialist,  's  Response
Hi. Thank you for writing to HCM.

The humming sound experienced by your son is known as tinnitus. It is the sensation of sound created by the nerve responsible for hearing (auditory nerve) when there is no external stimuli for sound. This occurs when the nerve is irritated.

The short lasting reversible tinnitus experienced by your is most likely due to eustachian tube (ET) obstruction. ET connects the middle ear to the back of the nose and if it is blocked with mucous it creates negative pressure in the middle ear thereby irritating the auditory nerve and causing tinnitus. At these times the arterial pulsations around the ear become more prominent and we're hence felt.

This is nothing to be too worried about and may occur a few more times if there is more mucous within the nasal cavity. If it persists an ENT consultation may be necessary.

Hope this information helps. Do let me know if you have any further questions.
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What Causes Humming Sound In Ears?

Hi. Thank you for writing to HCM. The humming sound experienced by your son is known as tinnitus. It is the sensation of sound created by the nerve responsible for hearing (auditory nerve) when there is no external stimuli for sound. This occurs when the nerve is irritated. The short lasting reversible tinnitus experienced by your is most likely due to eustachian tube (ET) obstruction. ET connects the middle ear to the back of the nose and if it is blocked with mucous it creates negative pressure in the middle ear thereby irritating the auditory nerve and causing tinnitus. At these times the arterial pulsations around the ear become more prominent and we re hence felt. This is nothing to be too worried about and may occur a few more times if there is more mucous within the nasal cavity. If it persists an ENT consultation may be necessary. Hope this information helps. Do let me know if you have any further questions.