Why Does High Blood Pressure Cause Tinnitus?

It’s one of the most common – and yet incredibly complicated – hearing conditions that an audiologist will treat. In the simplest of terms, tinnitus is the presence of a ringing or buzzing sound in your ears, which doesn’t exist in the outside world. Nobody else can hear it, so the sound is generated from within. 

There are so many causes of tinnitus, with some of the most common ones being:

• Exposure to loud noises
• Earwax blockages
• Disorders of the ear
• Hearing loss

As well as this, there are also strong links between high blood pressure and tinnitus. If you have high blood pressure, there is a relatively high chance that it might cause tinnitus. Especially if you have the two together, then it’s almost certain that they are linked. 

The question is, why does high blood pressure cause tinnitus? 

High Blood Pressure Explained

Your blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of your blood vessels. When you get your blood pressure checked, you will receive two readings:

• Systolic blood pressure: This is the pressure in your blood vessels when your heart beats.
• Diastolic blood pressure: This is the pressure in your blood vessels when your heart is at rest.

The readings are shown as the systolic blood pressure over diastolic, and the medical classification for high blood pressure is as such:

• Systolic blood pressure: 130
• Diastolic blood pressure: 80

High blood pressure basically means that there is too much pressure in your blood vessels, and it can lead to a whole range of health problems. But where is the link between it and tinnitus?

High Blood Pressure Medications

If you take medication to treat your high blood pressure, it could cause tinnitus. Both loop diuretics and aspirin are commonly used to treat this issue, as both are blood thinners. It is believed that blood-thinning medication can cause temporary tinnitus when taken regularly. 

Thankfully, most people shouldn’t take high enough doses of high blood pressure medication to experience tinnitus. A good way to know if your medication is causing the ringing in your ears is to consider when you first recognized it. Has it only started since you’ve been on the medication for high blood pressure? If so, there could be a connection. 

Increased Blood Viscosity

One of the common side effects of high blood pressure is increased blood viscosity. This means that your blood becomes thicker, which is why most high blood pressure medications are blood thinners. The problem with thicker blood is that your blood struggles to flow through the blood vessels. 

With regards to tinnitus, it means that less blood can flow freely through the vessels in your inner ear, reducing how much oxygen gets to it. As a consequence, the lack of oxygen can cause problems in your ear that lead to hearing loss. If you refer back to the introduction, you’ll know that hearing loss is a leading cause of tinnitus. So, in some cases, it can originally stem from high blood pressure. 

Blood Vessel Problems

Furthermore, there’s a particular type of tinnitus that can also be caused by high blood pressure. This is known as pulsatile tinnitus, and it’s when your tinnitus sounds like a pumping or throbbing sound in your ears. If this is the case, it is typically caused by damage to your blood vessels. 

What’s caused that damage? While many things can be at fault, there’s a high chance that high blood pressure is the culprit. Pumping blood around your body at extreme pressures can degrade your blood vessels and cause permanent damage. We strongly advise that you seek immediate medical help if you hear a constant pulsing in your ears that lasts longer than a few minutes. 

Contact Us for Tinnitus Treatment

Tinnitus doesn’t necessarily cause hearing loss, but it can be a symptom of it. Likewise, it can also be an annoyance to live with, causing a lot of stress and anxiety. Ironically, on the topic of high blood pressure and tinnitus, the stress caused by your tinnitus can increase your blood pressure.

Don’t worry, you can get treatment for tinnitus by booking an appointment with a qualified and experienced audiologist. To learn more, contact GL Wyeno Hearing Specialists PC today by calling us today at (402) 463-2431.