Pathogenesis of cervicogenic tinnitus and deafness

  Tinnitus and deafness are common conditions in otolaryngology, but some of them are related to cervical osteochondral injuries, and the pathogenesis of tinnitus and deafness related to cervical osteochondral injuries is also called “cervicogenic tinnitus and deafness”.  The vertebral arteries, one from each side of the subclavian artery, mostly enter the transverse foramen of the 6th cervical vertebra and pass upward through the corresponding transverse foramen, enter the brain from the greater occipital foramen, and converge under the cerebral bridge to form the vertebrobasilar artery. The vagus artery, which branches off from the anterior inferior cerebellar artery, enters the inner ear canal and supplies blood mainly to the inner ear; its main trunk is the common cochlear artery and one branch is the anterior branch of the vestibular artery.  Each branch of the labyrinth artery travels in a twisted or spiral pattern before reaching the cochlea and vestibular organs. This anatomical feature determines its susceptibility to microcirculatory disorders, which can cause tinnitus and deafness.  Acute and chronic injuries or degenerative changes in the neck that cause displacement of the cervical spine can stimulate or compress the vertebral artery, resulting in inadequate blood supply to the vertebrobasilar system or reflex spasm of the vagus artery, leading to acute and chronic disorders of blood circulation in the inner ear and causing tinnitus and deafness. In young and middle-aged patients, because of the absence of serious cervical spine and joint lesions, the impaired blood circulation in the inner ear is mostly caused by vasospasm; whereas in elderly patients, because of the more serious cervical spine and joint lesions and different degrees of cerebral arteriosclerosis, the impaired blood circulation in the inner ear is mostly chronic.  The treatment of cervicogenic tinnitus and deafness focuses on correcting the misaligned displacement of the cervical spine and treating the soft tissue damage around it to eliminate the stimulation or extrusion caused by the bone displacement and soft tissue damage to the vertebral artery.