You notice a ringing in your ears when you wake up in the morning. This is strange because they weren’t doing that yesterday. So you begin thinking about likely causes: recently, you’ve been keeping your music at a lower volume and you haven’t been working in a loud environment. But you did take some aspirin for your headache before bed.
Could the aspirin be the trigger?
You’re thinking to yourself “perhaps it’s the aspirin”. And you recall, somewhere in the deeper recesses of your memory, hearing that certain medications were connected to reports of tinnitus. is aspirin one of those medicines? And does that mean you should quit using aspirin?
What’s The Link Between Tinnitus And Medications?
The long standing rumor has linked tinnitus symptoms with numerous medications. But those rumors aren’t exactly what you’d call well-founded.
Tinnitus is commonly viewed as a side effect of a broad range of medicines. But the reality is that only a small number of medications lead to tinnitus symptoms. So why do so many people believe tinnitus is such a common side effect? Here are some theories:
- It can be stressful to begin using a new medicine. Or, in some situations, it’s the root cause, the thing that you’re taking the medication to deal with, that is stressful. And stress is a common cause of (or exacerbator of) tinnitus symptoms. So it isn’t medicine causing the tinnitus. It’s the stress of the entire ordeal, though the confusion between the two is somewhat understandable.
- The condition of tinnitus is pretty prevalent. Persistent tinnitus is a problem for as many as 20 million people. When that many people cope with symptoms, it’s unavoidable that there will be some coincidental timing that happens. Enough people will start taking medicine around the same time that their unrelated tinnitus starts to act up. It’s understandable that people would incorrectly think that their tinnitus symptoms are being caused by medication due to the coincidental timing.
- Many medications can influence your blood pressure, which also can affect tinnitus.
What Medications Are Connected to Tinnitus
There is a scientifically established link between tinnitus and a few medicines.
Strong Antibiotics And The Tinnitus Connection
There are certain antibiotics that have ototoxic (ear damaging) properties. Known as aminoglycosides, these antibiotics are very strong and are usually reserved for specific instances. High doses have been proven to cause damage to the ears (including creating tinnitus symptoms), so such dosages are normally limited.
Medication For High Blood Pressure
Diuretics are commonly prescribed for individuals who are dealing with hypertension (high blood pressure). Creating diuretics have been known to cause tinnitus-like symptoms, but usually at significantly higher doses than you may typically come across.
Ringing in The Ears Can be Produced by Taking Aspirin
It is possible that the aspirin you used is causing that ringing. But here’s the thing: It still depends on dosage. Usually, high dosages are the significant problem. The doses you take for a headache or to treat heart disease aren’t often big enough to cause tinnitus. Here’s the good news, in most circumstances, when you quit taking the large dosages of aspirin, the tinnitus symptoms will go away on their own.
Check With Your Doctor
Tinnitus may be able to be caused by several other unusual medicines. And the interaction between some combinations of medicines can also produce symptoms. So talking to your doctor about any medication side effects is the best strategy.
That being said, if you begin to notice ringing or buzzing in your ears, or other tinnitus-like symptoms, get it checked out. It’s difficult to say for certain if it’s the medicine or not. Tinnitus is also strongly connected to hearing loss, and some treatments for hearing loss (like hearing aids) can help.