Hearing aids can alleviate tinnitus by amplifying background noises and masking tinnitus sounds. Many brands of hearing care products have some type of technology to relieve tinnitus in their hearing aids. Some brands have the technology built into hearing aids, others have an app, and some companies offer both. Just putting on headphones often helps reduce tinnitus symptoms, Ramachandran says.
But these devices also have features that can help. About 20 percent of the adult population will report some type of hearing loss at any given time. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders states that about 36 million American adults suffer from hearing loss. Unfortunately, only a small fraction will get the kind of lasting relief you need.
Tinnitus is one of the most common hearing problems people experience (although it's a symptom, not an independent condition), but tinnitus is often ignored for many years. The search for the best treatments for tinnitus has sparked a great debate among audiologists, otolaryngologists and others. Ringing in the ears is a complicated symptom that can have many different underlying causes. Tinnitus treatment for one person may not work for another.
Because it's so distinctly personal, it's so important to choose an audiologist who offers personalized, evidence-based treatments. Hearing aids are a great starting point for those who suffer from tinnitus and also have hearing loss. These are usually people who find it difficult to hear external sounds at a desirable volume and expect those sounds to be amplified. Hearing aids help many people with tinnitus, but they don't work for everyone.
Even so, when combined with tinnitus retraining, therapy, and other strategies, a comprehensive treatment plan can generate highly desirable results. When this is the case, you'll want to choose an audiologist who will allow you to further explore your options. In most cases, the audiologist will recommend a combination of treatments for tinnitus, which may include sound therapy, sound masks, counseling, medications, and others. For more serious cases of tinnitus, a multidisciplinary approach involving several medical providers may be necessary.
Because tinnitus is relatively common, researchers around the world are constantly looking for new ways to treat it. Choosing an audiology office that uses a proven, evidence-based approach will help increase the likelihood of getting a successful outcome. One of the most effective forms of tinnitus treatment is sound therapy. As the term suggests, sound therapy helps to “rehabilitate” the hearing system and change the way it hears the world around it.
Sound therapy often involves several exercises that can help retrain the brain and begin to gradually reduce the intensity of tinnitus. While the relief it provides may not always be immediate, most patients will report positive progress after a few months. It's also important to note that while the two are only sometimes used together, sound therapy and hearing aids are not mutually exclusive. Sound maskers can mask a person's tinnitus with white noise, but they are NOT effective in providing long-term benefits.
Masks for short-term use can be used to cover up the tinnitus problem. However, to find a long-term solution, the brain must “see” tinnitus to reclassify it as neutral and desensitize it to its presence and impact. If you have symptoms of tinnitus and have never met with an audiologist, this may be the perfect time to schedule your first appointment. Many people are completely unaware of how much better the world can sound until they are presented with some of the technologies and treatments currently available.
You should also schedule an appointment with an audiologist if you suffer from tinnitus, hyperacusis, or any other debilitating hearing problem. These problems are much more treatable than many people initially assume. If you saw an audiologist a few years ago and didn't have the answers you were looking for, you should revisit the idea knowing that technology has improved and that there are now more options than ever to help patients with tinnitus and other hearing-related problems. In the complex world of hearing, the need for personalized hearing solutions is undeniable.
When it comes to tinnitus, many people will benefit from using hearing aids or hearing devices, while others may need a more in-depth approach to tinnitus treatment, such as TRT. If you want to determine the severity of your tinnitus, consider taking our tinnitus impact survey. At Sound Relief Hearing Center, we provide hope and help to people living with tinnitus and other hearing health problems. Our patients are at the center of everything we do, and we strive to guide them to overcome their challenges through innovative and compassionate healthcare.
A hearing aid can help relieve tinnitus if you have a hearing loss. An audiologist can help you find and use the best hearing aid for you. And if they get their hearing tested, they'll usually have at least some level of hearing loss and may not realize it, Ramachandran says. It is theorized that, since hearing aids restore some of the stimulation that the brain lacked, they could help control tinnitus, he explains.
Hearing aids mask tinnitus by amplifying external noise in your immediate environment, allowing your hearing and nervous systems to process more sound. With the amplification of hearing aids, external sounds can activate the auditory nervous system enough to reduce the perception of tinnitus and can cause the expression of neural plasticity, which can reprogram the auditory nervous system and therefore have a long-term beneficial effect on tinnitus by restoring neuronal function. If you're not sure which tinnitus treatment approach is right for you, schedule an appointment with the experts at the Sound Relief Hearing Center. While it's indisputable that your audiologist may prescribe hearing aids as part of your tinnitus management strategy, it's vital to note that these devices don't cure tinnitus.
After all, for many people, tinnitus, wheezing and tinnitus are their problem, not their inability to hear. The use of the hearing aid should become natural for the patient, even if it is only one element of therapy. As a result, you hear more background noises that mask tinnitus symptoms, giving you a more natural sound experience. You can get enough hearing stimulation when using a hearing aid, making it a practical option to consider when treating tinnitus.
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