Tinnitus

By Bethany Wiseman, AuD

What Is Tinnitus?

According to the American Tinnitus Association approximately 50 million Americans suffer from tinnitus. It is classified as the perception of sound in the ears or head when no external stimuli are present. Tinnitus can be described as ringing, buzzing, whistling, hissing, roaring, clicking, pulsating, or a pure tone. It can be constant or intermittent and occur in one or both ears.

There are a plethora of etiologies but some of the more common causes are hearing loss, noise exposure, aging, wax, ear or head trauma, jaw malfunction, depression, and a variety of medications. It is important for patients to understand that tinnitus is a symptom and not a disease.

Many patients do not seek help for their tinnitus because they do not know where to go or do not believe there is treatment available. However, there are proven ways to manage tinnitus. A doctor of audiology can perform a comprehensive tinnitus evaluation and develop a personalized treatment plan.

Tinnitus Management

One of the best ways for an individual to manage their tinnitus is to understand it. When a person understands how tinnitus works it takes the fear of the unknown away. A better understanding allows patients to develop methods to control it.

Another way to manage tinnitus is through sound enrichment. The purpose of sound enrichment is to provide the brain with an external stimulus to train it to no longer focus on the tinnitus. When individuals are deprived of external sound, tinnitus will be perceived by most people.

Sound enrichment can occur though hearing aids, sound generators, or a combination of both. Hearing aids amplify sounds to pitches or regions that are deprived of stimulation due to hearing loss. Amplification can interfere with tinnitus making it inaudible or decreasing the perception. A study reported in the Hearing Review by Kochkin and Tyler (2008) found that 60% of patients reported minor to major relief from tinnitus by wearing amplification alone.

If amplification alone does not relieve the tinnitus or hearing loss is not the cause, retraining can be accomplished by introducing low level external sounds via sound generators. Through sound generators the brain learns to not focus on the tinnitus. We want to learn how to habituate to tinnitus in order to control our reaction. Through the combination of education, sound enrichment, and counseling tinnitus can be managed.