June 7, 2023 – People with tinnitus may find relief with a brand new treatment, in response to a brand new study. Study.
Tinnitus is the feeling of hearing ringing, buzzing, hissing, chirping, whistling or other noises. About 15% of Americans have tinnitus, the University of Michigan's Kresge Hearing Research Institute said in a Press release concerning the study.
If scientists can determine how the brain processes information from multiple senses – not only hearing – it could help them develop personalized tinnitus treatments, the press release said.
The researchers studied 99 individuals with somatic tinnitus, a type of the condition wherein things like clenching the jaw or applying pressure to the brow cause a noticeable change within the pitch or loudness of perceived sounds. About 70% of individuals with tinnitus have this kind.
Study participants got a transportable home device that might do two things: It could send short audio pulses that reproduced the sound of the person's tinnitus at various intensities, thereby reducing the consequences of the tinnitus within the ear. When combined with electrical stimulation from electrodes placed near the temple or on the spine, it could amplify the device's effects.
One group received the bisensory treatment for half-hour a day for six weeks, followed by a 6-week break from treatment after which 6 weeks of treatment that focused only on hearing. The other group began with hearing-only treatment, followed by the break after which the bisensory treatment. Study participants answered weekly questions on the Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) and the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI). The TFI and THI use patient self-report to measure the severity of the tinnitus and the extent of distress it causes.
The study was published earlier this month in JAMA Open Network.
The university's research team found that study participants in each groups who received biseneal treatment reported a discount within the loudness of their tinnitus, in addition to an overall higher quality of life. Those who received treatment that focused only on the sound didn't report such positive results.
“This study paves the way for the use of personalized, bisenergetic stimulation as an effective treatment for tinnitus and offers hope to millions of tinnitus sufferers,” said Dr. Susan Shore of the research institute within the press release.