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Tinnitus and hyperacusis evaluation and therapy
Almost everyone occasionally experiences a mild form of tinnitus that may last for a few seconds to minutes at a time. Tinnitus sufferers report that tinnitus can become more debilitating when it becomes more constant and can interfere with the ability to concentrate or sleep.
In some cases, it is not known what may have caused the tinnitus to occur or increase. Some common causes of tinnitus may include: hearing loss, exposure to loud sounds, changes in medication, stress or other health issues.
Diagnosis of tinnitus begins with a tinnitus consult which is of no charge to the patient. Case history, a review of symptoms, and a brief introduction to the therapy options will be discussed. If a comprehensive evaluation is recommended, this will include a full diagnostic workup consisting of a hearing test to determine if a hearing loss is present, otoacoustic emissions to evaluate inner ear function, as well as obtaining tinnitus parameters (loudness, pitch matching) and loudness discomfort levels to determine recommendations for appropriate therapy. Sound therapy at Advanced Otolaryngology, P.C. is used to treat the following:
Tinnitus is the medical term for perceiving noises in your head when there is no outside source of the sound. The noises may be soft or loud and sound like ringing, blowing, roaring, buzzing, hissing, humming, whistling or sizzling.
Hyperacusis – patients experience a reduced tolerance to moderate and normal, everyday sounds.
Misophonia – the dislike of sound with an abnormally strong physiological response of the autonomic and limbic system
Phonophobia – misophonia when fear is involved
Selective sound sensitivity syndrome (4S) - an emotional reaction to soft sounds only (typically anger reactions in an effort to remove negative stimulation); hearing can be normal; primary trigger sounds can be eating or breathing sounds
Although there is no “cure” for tinnitus, the treatments provided at Advanced Otolaryngology, P.C. have some of the highest success rates in reducing tinnitus awareness and disturbance. Dr. Phillips has been working with tinnitus and hyperacusis patients for over 10 years.
Tinnitus Retraining Therapy (TRT) was first developed by Pawell Jastreboff, Ph.D., Sc.D. in 1988. Dr. Phillips was trained by Dr. Jastreboff in 2000 at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. TRT uses a combination of counseling and sound generators to help patients reduce the awareness and disturbance of tinnitus. We DO NOT mask tinnitus as the brain will not learn to ignore something it is unable to detect. Typical tinnitus therapy alone may take 12-18 months, while therapy for hyperacusis can reduce sound sensitivity issues in as little as 3 months. Advanced Otolaryngology, P.C. is one of the only clinics in Northern Colorado to offer tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT) to treat tinnitus, hyperacusis, misophonia and phonophobia.
Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment is another tinnitus treatment we provide at Advanced Otolaryngology, P.C. Its core technology was conceived in 1993 and it was FDA-cleared in 2005. Neuromonics tinnitus treatment involves the use of a small medical processor that delivers an acoustic signal (embedded in music) at a comfortable listening level. This sound stimulates a wide range of auditory pathways and positively engages the emotional system and autonomic nervous system of the brain which in turn decreases disturbance from tinnitus over the course of the treatment. The average therapy may take approximately 6-8 months and clinical trials and research indicate over a 90% success in the reduction of tinnitus awareness and disturbance. Other results reveal better relaxation, sleep, and overall improved quality of life.
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