3 Types of Tinnitus Treatments

Tinnitus is often described as a ringing sensation in the ears. Some people also describe it as a hissing, chirping, whistling or even buzzing sound. The noise can often be heard intermittently, or it could be a low and constant sound. It can vary in volume, and some people even describe it as music.

Tinnitus is a very common condition that affects millions of people around the world. For most of that number, the condition is just something annoying that happens now and then. However, for others, tinnitus is a condition that causes people to lose concentration and it can even cause undue distress.

Sadly, tinnitus doesn’t have an easy remedy because it can be caused by a number of different things. Audiologists deal with tinnitus in many different ways. From suggesting hearing aids to offering therapy, here are a couple of different ways to treat tinnitus.

1. Dealing with the underlying condition

Tinnitus is always caused by an underlying condition. Whether that condition is a neck injury, hearing loss or impacted earwax, your audiologist will be able to identify the issue and help you remedy it. Some common causes of tinnitus are:

• Ear infections
• Earwax build-ups
• Age-related hearing loss
• Inner ear damage which is caused by loud noise exposure
• Otosclerosis, an inherited condition involving abnormal bone growth

2. Using therapy

There’s no single treatment that works for tinnitus and it varies from person to person. Although research is still continuing to find an effective treatment, one of the best ways to deal with it is to find the underlying condition and treat it. Sadly, the underlying cause of tinnitus is often difficult to find and it might not always solve your tinnitus issues. As a result, you may need to turn to other methods to help treat it.

Sound therapy is one of the most common types of therapy that can help distract you from the sounds of tinnitus. Counseling is also another form of therapy that educates you on how to cope with it more effectively. There’s also cognitive behavioral therapy (known as CBT) that aims to change how you cope with tinnitus. Lastly, your audiologist may recommend tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT), which assists in retraining your brain and the way it responds to tinnitus.

All four types of therapy are common and will likely be suggested by your audiologist in the event that a cure is not found.

3. Hearing aids

Lastly, audiologists may recommend that you wear hearing aids to help combat both hearing loss and tinnitus. This is a solution that can help against two different problems, drastically reducing the health and mental effects of both.