It has been a few years since I have reported on the nature of tinnitus, where it comes from and how it is treated.  The bad news is that there is no magic pill that will cure tinnitus.  The good news is that there has been an explosion of research on the subject and some very promising treatment options that have been approved for use in the USA. 

Several studies have looked into the physical causes of tinnitus, aided by new brain imaging technology.  Studies conducted by researchers at the Department of Clinical Otolaryngology at the State University of New York using computerized brain tomography have found one of the physical processes of the perception of tinnitus.  Ringing seems to come from an interference in the process of conducting or inhibiting neural transmissions within the auditory pathway, the part of the brain responsible for conducting information coming from the hearing nerve.  This information also helps us to understand why the tinnitus is present, whether it is caused by sound deprivation as in the case of untreated hearing loss or whether it is a sign of further central nervous system problems.

Now that we know more about the mechanism of tinnitus production, we understand more about how to relieve it.  Most of the medical treatments now available are for specific use for people with severe disabling tinnitus.   This is characterized as tinnitus that has severe effects such as sleeplessness, depression, irritability, inability to concentrate and so on.  Severe tinnitus can have a devastating effect on a persons’ career, family and personal life.  There are new drug therapies for severe disabling tinnitus using specific drug treatments not originally designed for tinnitus relief.  Studies from the State University of New York are looking at several drug therapies combined with other more established forms of tinnitus treatment.   During the treatment, brain imaging is used to look at the effects the combined therapies are having on the auditory pathways.

For those for whom tinnitus is not as severe but still significant and problematic, a new non-invasive therapy approach is now available.  The Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment was developed by researchers at Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia.  It combines the use of a prescribed sound stimulus for a period of time and structured counseling to provide both immediate relief from tinnitus and long term desensitization to the tinnitus signal. 

The sound signal is shaped to a person’s specific audiometric profile (hearing test) by the clinician and played on a personal sound player much like an IPod or MP3 player.  Support and counseling is also included at regular intervals during the course of treatment.

In their third clinical trial, the Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment resulted in significant improvements in tinnitus distress and awareness levels.  91% of the study participants reported an improvement in the disturbance of tinnitus of at least 40% (as measured by the Tinnitus Reaction Questionnaire).  At 6 months after beginning the treatment, 80% listed their tinnitus as no longer clinically significant.