Treating Tinnitus: Neuromonics

Tinnitus 
Tinnitus is a condition in which a person perceives a sound, despite the lack of the noise in the environment. A common symptom associated with tinnitus is ringing in the ears. Unlike transient ear ringing, which is a common phenomenon, people with tinnitus have sustained or chronic ear ringing. Some other sounds that may be heard include hissing, chirping, clicking or roaring. The noise may be heard in one or both ears and varies in intensity.

According to the American Tinnitus Association, more than 50 million Americans have tinnitus. For 12 million, the symptoms are serious enough to require medical attention. Two million patients have severe, distracting and debilitating symptoms that interfere with the ability to carry out daily activities or maintain focus for school or a job.

Although tinnitus can occur at any age, risk is higher in older people. Age-related hearing loss, associated with hearing nerve damage, can lead to tinnitus. In younger people, sudden exposure to loud noise can also damage hearing and cause tinnitus. Symptoms can also be caused by wax build-up in the ears, use of certain medications, ear or sinus infection, jaw misalignment, head or neck trauma or certain medical conditions (like allergies, high blood pressure, diabetes, thyroid disease or tumor on the hearing nerve).

Treating Tinnitus: Neuromonics 
Some patients with tinnitus can be treated with sound masking, in which low levels of competing sounds are emitted through ear phones (like white noise or static). These sounds aren’t meant to cover up the tinnitus symptoms, but rather distract the patient with a more acceptable, less annoying sound.

Although masking works for many people, it is only a cover-up for symptoms. Some physicians are now using a system that actually re-trains the brain to stop focusing on the tinnitus symptoms. It’s called Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment. Kamal Elliot, Au.D., Audiologist and Clinic Director at A & E Audiology, Inc., says the treatment works on an area of the brain, called the limbic system.

The Neuromonics treatment is delivered through a portable iPOD-like device (called the Oasis™) that’s connected to a set of headphones. Patients must first have a thorough hearing evaluation to determine if the treatment is appropriate and to develop a personalized sound program. Then a customized acoustic stimulus is embedded into tracks of relaxing music and delivered to the headphones at a low listening level.

Therapy is delivered in two phases. During the first phase, the Oasis is worn for two to four hours a day during regular activities, like work or reading. The goal is to have the brain pay more attention to the relaxing music and the masking sound. Elliot says, even with the first part of the therapy, patients start to sleep better and are able to perform daily functions.

During phase two of treatment, the use of the embedded masking sound is slightly decreased. This allows the brain to be exposed to the tinnitus symptoms for very short bursts of time. The goal is to train the brain to continue focusing on the relaxing music and ignore the tinnitus symptoms. Initially, the Oasis device is used for at least two hours a day. Gradually treatment time is decreased, hopefully, allowing the brain to reinforce the new neural pathways to filter out the tinnitus. Phase two treatment lasts about four months.

Even if brain re-training is successful, the results may not be permanent. Elliot says doctors recommend maintenance therapy once a week for two to four hours to sustain the effects of the treatment.

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