Ah, that’s just what millions of other Americans would like to know. At the moment, there is no cure for tinnitus for the vast majority of (pronounced either “TIN-it-tus” or “Tin- NIGH-tus”), but there are things that help.
Tinnitus is defined as “the perception of noise in your head that you can hear and no one else can,” said Dr. David Vernick, chief of otolaryngology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Sometimes, though, when tinnitus is caused by a louder-than-normal heartbeat pulsing in the ear, a doctor can hear it through a stethoscope. This “pulsatile” tinnitus may indicate a problem in blood flow that should be further evaluated.
People usually describe tinnitus as a ringing in the ears, but it can also be hissing, roaring, whistling, chirping or clicking. The sound may be intermittent or constant and can range from soft to so loud and annoying, as happens with 2 million of the 12 million tinnitus sufferers who seek medical treatment, that it is seriously disabling, according to the American Tinnitus Association (www.ata.org). The causes of tinnitus are many. Hearing loss is a major contributor to tinnitus, but some people get tinnitus without hearing loss, said Dr. Robert Levine, a neurologist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. Wax in the ear canal cause also cause tinnitus, as can many medications, ear or sinus infections and TMJ (temporomandibular joint) problems. Occasionally, tumors on nerves near the ear can also cause tinnitus.
As for treatments, some people swear by the minerals magnesium or zinc or the herb ginkgo biloba, but the data on efficacy is “sketchy,” said Vernick. If you have hearing loss, a hearing aid may allow you to hear sounds from the outside world, which then mask the tinnitus. Biofeedback, a relaxation technique, and cognitive therapy, in which you learn to deal better with negative thoughts, may help offset the psychological distress tinnitus can create. Anti-anxiety and anti-depressant drugs may also help.
In patients who are deaf or nearly so, a cochlear implant sometimes gets rid of tinnitus. There are also devices like hearing aids that produce low-level sound that blocks perception of tinnitus and a technique called “tinnitus retraining therapy” in which steady, background sounds are fed into the ear at a low level, helping people to “habituate,” or learn to become unaware of their tinnnitus.