Tinnitus has been around for a long time. But perhaps it’s new to you, like a loud used car you can’t return. Usually, though not always, tinnitus reveals itself as an incessant ringing or buzzing in the ears. The sound can be, at times, extremely loud. Symptoms fluctuate considerably, but this is the point: you are probably looking for new ways of handling your tinnitus if it’s something that’s bothering you.
The good news is that new therapies and treatment options are being developed that aren’t cures for tinnitus but can help you deal with it. Certain of those therapies even involve your tongue.
Newest Approaches to Tinnitus
One of the latest treatments for tinnitus sounds somewhat unusual at first but does appear to show some promise. Both the tongue and the ear are stimulated with this device developed at the Trinity School of Medicine in Dublin. Bi-modal neurostimulation is the technical term for this technique.
Based on the first tests of this device, the results were pretty optimistic. Most individuals underwent treatments for a duration of twelve weeks or so. Those same people noted a significant reduction in their tinnitus symptoms, and the results continued for up to twelve months. But until the testing phase is completed it won’t be generally available.
What Can I do Now to Find Tinnitus Relief?
Of course, it takes a while for technology to work their way from research and development to patient availability. So maybe you’re curious about what you can do now to help deal with your tinnitus.
Luckily, there are some newer tinnitus management devices available today. And the most prevalent way to handle your tinnitus is a modern hearing aid.
Here’s the way it works:
Your hearing aid can give you something else to listen to. When you start to lose your hearing, external get quieter and that can make the internal sounds of tinnitus get louder. The volume of the outside world is boosted by hearing aids. That doesn’t change the volume of your tinnitus, but it could make the ringing less noticeable.
There is a noise masking device similar to a modern hearing aid. If your hearing loss is fairly minor, then a masking device might be the best way to treat your symptoms. A hearing aid has a comparable appearance to a masking device. And masking technology can be combined with modern hearing aids. Your tinnitus symptoms can be masked by sounds produced by this type of technology. In some cases this will be a tone, in other situations, it may be some white noise. Whatever will best hide the ringing in your ears.
Obviously, this is only a starting point. We can show you devices that work best for tinnitus. Contact us.