The cause of tinnitus, a persistent ringing or buzzing in the ears, has long baffled scientists. However, there is one thing that all hearing specialists agree on, you are more likely to experience tinnitus if you also suffer from hearing loss.
Some of the main factors that play a role in hearing loss are genetics, age, and lifestyle. And while many individuals think of hearing loss as being obvious, the truth is that some slight hearing loss can go unobserved. Unfortunately, your risk of experiencing hearing loss increases with even minor cases of hearing loss.
It’s not a cure, but hearing aids can help manage tinnitus
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. There are some fairly remarkable similarities between tinnitus and hearing loss, in fact.
The pitch or frequency of the ringing one hears when dealing with tinnitus is typically in sync with the type of hearing loss that person encounters. For example, someone who hears high-pitched ringing from tinnitus may suffer from high-frequency hearing loss. The concept is that the brain tries to compensate for the missing frequencies by producing tinnitus sounds in the same frequency range.
A traditional hearing aid can effectively hide the ringing or buzzing associated with tinnitus by replacing it with the appropriate sounds. Luckily, tinnitus symptoms can be treated in other more advanced ways than traditional hearing aids.
Reduce symptoms of tinnitus with specialized hearing aids
Hearing aids detect environmental sounds and boost frequencies you can’t hear very well. Even though hearing aids have a simple concept, they help train your brain to receive particular stimulation again by amplifying noises like the rattle of a ceiling fan or the buzz of a dinner party.
But you can improve those amplification endeavors with a combination of other methods like counseling, sound stimulation, and stress management for a more extensive approach to treatment.
Some manufacturers even use the irregular rhythm of fractal tones to lessen the symptoms of tinnitus. Tinnitus sufferers typically hear tones that are constant and regular which can sometimes be disrupted by the irregular rhythms of these fractal tones. While white noise devices are available, the most prevalent fractal tones are similar to wind chimes that provide a soothing sound that overwhelms the ringing.
Other specialized devices attempt to mix your tinnitus in with the natural sounds you’re hearing. This approach will generally utilize a white noise signal that a hearing specialist can program to ensure proper calibration for your ear and your condition.
Whether it’s through sound therapy, blending, or a white noise mechanism, each of these specialized devices has a common aim of distracting the user away from the ringing or buzzing of tinnitus.
Though tinnitus has no cure, hearing aids can help decrease the severity of the symptoms and enhance quality of life, which is an attractive feature for the 50 million people who use hearing aids.
Want to discuss your tinnitus with a hearing professional?
For more info on decreasing tinnitus symptoms, take a look at our tinnitus section or call for a consultation.