The cochlea is a spiral structure containing cilia (hair-like structures) and fluids that flow throughout the inner ear to help with the detection of the body orientation and sound transmission to the brain. All the cilia in the cochlea are connected to the brain via the auditory nerve. When the cochlea gets damaged, the cilia may change direction and swap any stimuli around, sending impulses to the brain via the auditory nerve even if there's no sound.
Several things may cause damage to the cochlea, these include the following:
A traumatic blow to the head, usually from an accident or a violent attack.
Nose, dental or head surgery
Repeated exposure to very loud noises e.g. machinery at work
Exposure to gunfire noises e.g. at the police or military training centre
Continued exposure to loud music and other noises e.g. at a night club, from earphone music or even music in your car.
Sudden or frequent noisy explosions
Improper ear wax removal e.g. inserting sharp objects into the ear to remove unwanted wax.
All of the above may cause damage to the cochlea, resulting in impaired hearing or tinnitus. The best method of preventing cochlea damage-induced tinnitus is to avoid all of the above irritants.
Other factors that may cause or worsen tinnitus include the following:
