Hearing an echo that seems to come from within your ears without any obvious explanation can be concerning. Some clients report that it feels like they have a cotton wool ball within one or both ears, whereas others experience a sensation similar to that when travelling on a plane.
There are potentially many causes of an echo sound in the ear, but seeking help promptly and scheduling a professional evaluation of your hearing and ear health with your nearest Regain Hearing clinic is essential. Many contributing causes can be remedied quickly without allowing the problem to become worse.
In audiology, an echo that is characterised as being able to hear your own voice within your ears is referred to as autophony. If left untreated, autophony can develop into more profound symptoms and have an ongoing impact on your quality of life.
Key Facts About Why You May Hear an Echo Sound in Your Ear
- A sensation of an echo within one or both ears can be due to varied issues or hearing complications, such as infections within the middle ear, build-ups of ear wax, and problems impacting the function of the eustachian tube.
- Symptoms can vary between people but can include hearing one’s own voice, experiencing fullness in the ears, or buzzing and humming noises similar to tinnitus.
- The best course of action is to schedule a hearing test to identify the cause of the echo. This can include removing ear wax blockages, treating infections, or recommending hearing aids to improve the quality of hearing and the ability to process external sounds.
Common Symptoms That Are Associated With an Echo in the Ear
Like many auditory complaints, there isn’t one set of symptoms that are linked with an echo in the ear because there are so many causes or factors that may be contributing to the problem.
Alongside hearing an echoing sound or feeling that your voice is echoing within your ears, you might, for instance, experience varying degrees of hearing loss.
If the hearing loss is partial, affects only one ear, or fluctuates, it may be more likely to be connected to an ear wax blockage or a build-up of fluid or pressure, which can be quickly and easily resolved.
Other symptoms include tinnitus, which can sound like continuous or intermittent ringing or humming in the ear and can worsen and become less noticeable in different environments or times of day.
Fullness within the ear, issues with balance, and soreness or sensitivity are also common. Vertigo and feeling dizzy are frequent side effects of infections and problems affecting the inner ear.
Understanding all your symptoms, how long they have been occurring, and any variations in their severity, intensity, and extent is, therefore, essential. This may provide us with clues to direct our hearing assessment and that point towards the primary reason you are hearing an echo within your ears.
Potential Causes of an Echo in One or Both Ears
Our hearing is often more complex than we realise, and the number of steps that need to happen for us to detect, process, and interpret a sound means that any irritations, infections, injuries, or issues with any aspect of our hearing can cause unwanted and intrusive noises or sensations.
In short, when a sound is emitted, sound waves travel into the outer ear, passing through to the ear canal and eardrum. If the sound is blocked, interrupted, or distorted at any phase, it can create an echo or countless other sounds.
For example, ear wax blockages can prevent sound waves from reaching your eardrum or distort the quality of the sound before you can hear it. Although ear wax is a leading cause of echoing inside your ear, there are numerous other potential causes we may need to investigate.
1. Infections Causing Echoing Sounds in the Ear
Infections are almost as common as ear wax blockages, and any infection within your middle ear can mean fluid accumulates, interferes with sound waves, and causes the sensation of hearing an echo inside your ear.
Other infections impacting your sinuses can have a similar effect. Inflammation and swelling in your sinuses due to issues like sinusitis can cause changes to your hearing quality or mean you have soreness and swelling inside the ears.
2. Eustachian Tube Dysfunction and Echoing
Your eustachian tube is a part of your ear that links the middle ear to the back of your nose. It performs varied tasks that keep the pressure within your ears balanced and equalised. If the tube is blocked, also known as Eustachian Tube Dysfunction or ETD, sound waves can echo inside your ear.
Sinus infections, viruses and colds, and allergies can also cause blockages.
Another possible reason connected to the eustachian tube is a patulous eustachian tube, which means that rather than becoming blocked, the tube stays partially or fully open all of the time. A symptom is being able to hear your breathing or the sound of your voice very loudly, which becomes elevated and seems to echo.
3. Allergies and Medication Reactions Contributing to Echoing in the Ear
Some medications are known as ototoxic, which means they may have side effects, but these don’t necessarily affect everybody or have the same impact. Everyday medicines like aspirin and ibuprofen, antibiotics, and chemotherapy medications can, though, affect how your inner ear nerve cells function, causing a sensation of echoing.
Similarly, allergies that cause pressure, imbalances in the fluid, or swelling inside the ears can also cause an echoing sound. Once identified, we can recommend an ear hygiene routine to manage symptoms alongside treatment for the allergy itself.
4. Fluid Build-ups and Their Link to an Inner Ear Echo
We’ve mentioned fluid that can build up in response to an injury or infection. Still, in some instances, there isn’t any clear cause or reason that has promoted the fluid accumulation – this is also referred to as otitis media with effusion or glue ear.
Fluid can become trapped within the middle ear even if there is no infection, which often makes it feel like your ears are full and contribute towards an echo.
5. Age-Related Causes
Finally, an echo sound in your ear can be one of the many symptoms of age-related hearing loss or hearing changes, possibly accompanied by tinnitus, where you hear sounds like ringing, humming or buzzing within one or both ears.
The natural process of ageing can mean that the delicate structures within our inner ears, like the cochlea, aren’t able to process sounds as effectively. A personalised treatment plan, custom hearing aids, and thorough hearing health assessment may be the best way forward.
How to Get Rid of an Echo Sound in the Ear
All the above factors, causes, or issues are important to explain because there isn’t one universal cure for an echo inside the ear, nor will the same treatment, therapy, or strategy be recommended for every client.
For example, one person with an echo in the ear caused by an ear wax build-up may find that microsuction resolves the issue almost immediately, with instant relief and long-term improvements in their ear and hearing health with a regular schedule of microsuction, or an ear hygiene plan to prevent build-ups from recurring.
Another person without ear wax build-up could find the same treatment provides little improvement to their symptoms—and a set of hearing aids, treatment for an ear infection, or other therapy may be far more suitable.
Approaches will necessarily vary, but they could include medications to manage infections, antihistamines to control allergies, and decongestants to help resolve sinus issues contributing to or causing the echoing sounds.
Hearing aids are also useful for improving the perception of sounds, reducing the intensity or intrusiveness of an echo, and providing overall benefits to those with inner ear echoes caused fully or partially by age-related hearing changes.
As always, step one is to schedule a thorough ear and hearing evaluation with the Regain Hearing team. We’ll take all the time needed to understand your symptoms, discuss the right plan and treatments for you, and ensure you make informed choices about how to take back control over your hearing.
What to Expect From a Hearing Test With Regain Hearing
We often speak with first-time clients who are worried about what a hearing test might involve or who have put off seeking help because they are concerned that hearing evaluations will be painful or that something serious could be contributing to their symptoms.
Our hearing tests are completed by qualified, accomplished audiologists and ear hygienists in private clinical settings. They are pain-free and use advanced techniques and equipment to ensure that even clients with sensitivities and ear infections can get the support they require.
A full series of hearing tests and exams evaluate and measure hearing health, check for infections, blockages, and other problems, understand how the eardrum functions, and detect subtle indications of pressure or fluid imbalances.
If we suggest a set of hearing aids alongside other treatments or as a standalone option to resolve or reduce your symptoms, we’ll also run through all the available models suited to your lifestyle, budget and expectations, with lifetime aftercare included as standard.
