Tinnitus , possible cause In-Ear headphones

[TheLetterD]

Hello
Im not sure if this is the Correct place to post Health issues, as I am aware this is not a health-forum
I make a diary of the medical problems I face from time to time, I copy pasted it so Please ignore incorrect sentence formation.

1. Stiffness in Neck, left Arm (Healed itself after 1 week of using muscle relaxants and avoiding pressure on my elbow, started est. 2/3rd week of Jan).

2.Crackling in Ear (Noticed for only 3-4 days, went away)

3.Tinnitus (Started 1st week of February 2012): Initially only in Left ear, sudden tinnitus, lasted for 10-15 seconds, Occurred 2-4 times a day. Then right ear, sensation of slight temp. hearing loss in left ear.
Then, constant ringing started around 11th / 12th of February , disturbs when no external sounds are present, disturbs and causes lack of concentration, not diagnosed by doctor yet)

I bought my EP 660s in December and have been using them a lot. Then I read this on Wikipedia:

In-ear headphones, whose sound enters directly into the ear canal without any opportunity to be deflected or absorbed elsewhere, is a common cause of tinnitus when volume is set beyond moderate levels.

But the thing is even though I have been using them a lot, the max vol. I kept the source (My PC when watching movies, or my iPod when listenenig to Songs) was 50-60%.

Im going to visit the Doctor tomorrow and Im quite worried.

The main reason I posted this was to know if anyone else has been facing these problems AND if the medical conditions I posted above (1,2 &3) are related!
AND I wanted to warn people who bought IEMs recently or are planning to buy them to avoid long usage, even at moderate volumes.

 

[freshseasons]

Have seen people carrying mobile bluetooth handsfree almost 24hrs sometimes sleeping in them.

Doesnt make quite a dent i say,unless the volume is really high. Best luck

 

[Sarath]

Give your self some rest. I experience similar problems and stayed away from IEMs for over 6 months. An overkill of a wait but I felt it was worth it.

Do remember the receptors in the ear do not heal once damaged. Hence it is best to avoid ear trauma. However over 80-100% volume over extended periods of time is the usual culprit.
A volume of around 60% is safe.

Going by your 15sec description I would say it is nothing to worry about. However it is still a good thing that you are taking a proffesional review. A tinnitus lasting several minutes / hours is a cause for worry. A few secs of it is normal in everyone and happens every now and then.

 

[Vyom]

Yups. Just to confirm, Tinnitus happens with me too randomly for about 10-15 sec at maybe difference of about a couple of days.

But I always thought the cause of which could be the sometimes sudden realization of something beyond explanation about an incident which occurred at any point of time of my life. And which maybe cause my brain to reflect the stimuli's received by sensory organs like ear, by imparting tinnitus for some time.

I won't blame if you couldn't understand the 2nd para completely, but that's what I always thought!

 

[Head Banger]

I have tinnitus for the past 15 years.Initially it was unbearable,but later i got used to it.The sound is very loud if i try to concentrate.Its all in the brain man.Here's a good discussion.

Supplements for tinnitus - Supplements - LONGECITY