Scientists still haven’t determined the cause of tinnitus, a ringing or buzzing in the ears. Hearing specialists, however, do agree that tinnitus is more prevalent in people who also have hearing loss.
Some of the principal factors that play a role in hearing loss are genetics, age, and lifestyle. And while it might seem as if the symptoms of hearing loss would be fairly obvious, when it’s still in the early stages, it frequently goes unnoticed. Worse, even a mild case of hearing loss increases your risk and likelihood of developing tinnitus.
Hearing aids can’t cure tinnitus, but they can help manage the symptoms
There is no cure for tinnitus. However, hearing loss and tinnitus symptoms can be improved as well as quality of life by using hearing aids. As a matter of fact, the similarities between hearing loss and tinnitus are pretty remarkable.
The frequency range that a person loses hearing in is often in sync with the pitch of their tinnitus symptoms. As an example, if someone has hearing loss in the high-frequency range, they will often hear a high-pitched ringing from tinnitus. Some people believe this parallel to be a consequence of the brain attempting to compensate for a lack of acoustic activation at that level by generating a similarly pitched tone of its own.
Tinnitus sounds can be effectively “masked” by a hearing aid which can drown out the offending sound and replace it with one that’s supposed to be heard. Here’s the good thing, there are other, more advanced options beyond just traditional hearing aids to manage the symptoms associated with tinnitus.
Specialized hearing aids to reduce tinnitus symptoms
Hearing aids work by picking up natural sounds from the environment around you and boosting them to a level that allows you to hear. Even though it might be simple in design, that amplification of noise, be it the hum of a dinner party or the rattling of a ceiling fan, is critical in teaching your brain to receive particular stimulations once more.
But other combinations of strategies like sound stimulation, counseling, and reducing stress can also be used to improve those amplification efforts and supply a more complete treatment approach.
Some hearing aid manufacturers endeavor to decrease tinnitus symptoms by using irregular rhythms of fractal tones. Tinnitus sufferers usually hear tones that are constant and regular which can sometimes be interrupted by the irregular rhythms of these fractal tones. The ringing is overwhelmed by pleasant, wind chime-like sounds generated by the most prevalent fractal tones instead of basic white noise which can also be helpful in some cases.
Other specialized devices attempt to blend your tinnitus in with the outside sounds you’re hearing. This strategy will typically use a white noise signal that a hearing specialist can program to ensure accurate calibration for your ear and your condition.
The common objective of these strategies is to help the user disregard tinnitus symptoms whether it’s through the use of white noise mechanisms, sound therapy, or blending.
It’s true that there is no cure for tinnitus, but for at least some of the 50 million suffering from the condition, hearing aids provide an attractive possibility to reduce symptoms and improve quality of life.
Have more questions about tinnitus?
For more info on decreasing tinnitus symptoms, check out our tinnitus section or call for a consultation.