In an article published for the March edition in the “Annals of Medicine and Surgery,” about 12,247 cases of COVID-19 post-vaccination tinnitus were reported until Sept. 14, 2021. Tinnitus is when one experiences ringing or other noises—that are not external sounds—in one or both ears, affecting between 15 and 20 percent of all people, says the Mayo Clinic.
“To the best of our knowledge, this is the first review evaluating any otologic manifestation following vaccine administration and aims to evaluate the potential pathophysiology, clinical approach, and treatment. Although the incidence is infrequent, there is a need to understand the precise mechanisms and treatment for vaccine-associated-tinnitus,” said the researchers.”
Because of the relatively high number of cases, they argued that “there is an overwhelming need to discern the precise pathophysiology and clinical management” of vaccine-associated-tinnitus because “despite several cases of tinnitus being reported following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, the precise pathophysiology is still not clear.”
The researchers, led by Syed Hassan Ahmed with the Dow University of Health Sciences, noted that stress and anxiety following COVID-19 vaccination could also play a role. Whether vaccine-related anxiety, they said, plays a role in the cause of tinnitus should be evaluated.
