AirPods causing tinnitus?

I too noticed a correlation between tinnitus and using AirPod Pros. Not sure I'd say Apple is negligent in that noise cancelling technology is fairly commonly used and accepted in the art. Probably not everyone is susceptible but some of us seem to be and probably more of us with prolonged use. I don't think the correlation of noise cancelling technology to tinnitus is well understood, including by ENT specialists, and needs study. Sharing information on forums like this seems like a good start to bringing this problem to people's attention.

I had the exact same experience. I started having a high pitched ringing in my right ear after using AirPods to mostly listen to audiobooks. It is especially hard to sleep at night. I went to the doctor and plan to see an ENT next, but from what I read about tinnitus, it sounds like I will be stuck with it for life. Thanks Apple! ☹️

I didn’t even use the air pod pro I used the regular air pod and had problems within 1 week. Just because I posted a complaint and got my money back doesn’t mean that it’s everything I can do. Apple needs to be accountable. Did they even properly test this equipment? I will look for that Facebook page and join that group. Our combined voices and actions can prevent others from future suffering.

Hi all, got AirPods Pro 3 days ago,It’s a second night in the row , I have that ringing noise in my ear. It doesn’t go away. After reading all above I’m very much concerned!

Obviously I will give it Back, but I’m worried about my health ! I can’t sleep with it !!!

Apple should be responsible for that. It’s painful and dangerous.

I have the same problem. I suddenly developed nightly tinnitus episodes the first or second day that I began using the AirPod Pros. Any day that I use the ANC I will have at least one episode of tinnitus. I even noticed that the tinnitus was always happening at the same time

of evening, which was bizarre.

I’m now experimenting with using the AirPods without ANC. I’m at the end of day 2 and so far the tinnitus hasn’t acted up.

It’s strange and disappointing that there is this problem with the ANC on the AirPod Pros because I have a Bose aviation headset and a Sony over ear headphones, both with ANC, and I’ve never experience tinnitus even after heavily using both of them during a day.

I did not realize that the airpod pros have a pressure system. At first I thought it was the ANC that was causing the problems for me. But I've been using my airpods without ANC for the past few weeks and am still experiencing tinnitus and equilibrium problems so I suspect that the pressure systems is the culprit

i experienced tinnitus issues with only using the regular AirPods - not the pro version. I think it has to do with a sensor or high pitch frequency in the device because they are wireless. When I use regular wired ear buds I didn’t experience any issues.

I’ve used original AirPods for a couple of years. Love them. Decided to upgrade to Pros. I am 70 and have had tinnitus for years. It lingers in the background and doesn’t typically bother me. Otherwise my hearing is quite good.

Immediately after using the Pros for the first time yesterday, my tinnitus seemed noticeably worse as has been noted by others.

I played around with them a bit more on my balcony this morning. I live in an urban area with moderate city noise.

The differences between ANC, Transparency and Off were dramatic and somewhat surreal. Then when I removed the Pros, the city sounds appeared much louder and more distinctive than usual.

I’m thinking the novel and altered auditory input may affect the processing of sound in the brain and thus our perception of what we hear.

It may be the heightened tinnitus is not physiological but mental.

Curious what others may think about this.

I already have had tinnitus for more than twenty years, and I wear hearing instruments to give back the high frequency loss. The aides also reduce the ringing, which can be a terrible thing to live with.

Enter Apple AirPod Pros two weeks ago, and the ringing definitely increased. So I would say my experience mirrors many others in this discussion group. However, if one already has tinnitus, it is best to avoid these products that are in-the-ear fit. Better to have over the ear cups that encompass the ear and (if you already have hearing instruments like me) can partially back-feed through the aides. That helped me a lot to have an enjoyable listening experience.

I bought my AirPods Pro in June this year and the same thing happened to me. I have had tinnitus for many years but I’m usually not bothered by it that much. Since I started using the AirPods it got exponentially worse and I have trouble sleeping. It’s quite stressful. I noticed the AirPods Pro have a quite high pitched ringing sound if you wear them even with nothing playing and the tinnitus I’m now experiencing is very similar to that sound. I’m flabbergasted that so many people have reported similar issues but Apple just ignores this issue.

I’ve noticed it too!! So glad I found this forum because this now makes total sense. I’ve had ringing in just my left ear for the past week now. I’ve been wearing my AirPods and OG Apple earphones more than ever with this pandemic via Zoom meetings for work. The ringing came out of nowhere and has been so annoying. I wore my AirPods today before I came across this forum and the ringing has gotten louder and more frequent. This sucks!

Hello.

I have the same issue. I bought Airpods last year...use them very randomly on the gym. But due to the Covid19 home confinment, I was several weeks working at home with long videocalls using the air pods. After some 8 weeks of confinment working at home...the Tinnitus appeared. And today at the office, I used airpods for 30 mins (I have not been using them for several weeks)...and the tinnitus increased its "presence"....and it ocurred me that it might be the reason. I Google it...and found several articles and posts about it. Last week I went to ear medic....and tomorrow I will be doing several ear tests and examinations. Shouldn't apple start to get worried about all this complaints? and try to work things out? Does anyone have passed by the same condition...and got tinnitus situation (solved, or improved) by not using anymore the airpods? That is my hope.... :-(

Some of the posts have voiced complaints that just having the Airpods in, with no sound on, still produces a high-pitched ringing. The product seems to generate a pitch that one's ear replicates after they're removed, almost like a phantom sound. I wasn't able to hear the ringing until I took them out but others hear it all the time, particularly in the left ear.

Hey itsmeelan,

I'm now experiencing this issue (persisting tinnitus for the past week) after getting Airpods pro last week and using them for about 5 days. After using them for 5 days, I've had persistent tinnitus that will not go away. I'm hoping to hear from you since you said you experienced this for a month and a half. Has your tinnitus from this finally gone away? Let me know.

Thanks!

To all of us who have experienced the ringing in the ears, I am happy to report that mine has subsided after not using Airpods (Pro or non-Pro). If the ringing persists for like three months or so, then I would recommend having your hearing checked, because I wear hearing instruments from Costco since 2017 - these definitely eliminate any tinnitus, as they smooth out the hearing loss on the high end frequencies. Some of us of a 'certain age' might deem it necessary to 'take the plunge' and use some assistance. If you are youthful yet, then I think your issue will subside in time. For what it's worth, I now use SONY over-the-ear earphones, and these do not bother my tinnitus.

I do not know what causes the ringing from the Airpods, but many theories of air pressure or noise cancellation or radio waves (?) have been posed. I really do not know, except to stay away from using Airpods for entertainment or phone calls. My two cents.