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Hearing Health Foundation is excited to share with the members of this community that we have launched a new section of our website exclusively focused on tinnitus! Topics you can learn about include causes of tinnitus, treatment options ranging from counseling and sound therapy to hearing aids and other devices to alleviate tinnitus, stories of those impacted, and research toward a cure. Since roughly 90 percent of tinnitus cases occur with an underlying hearing loss, our Hearing Restoration Project, which is developing a cure for hearing loss, can also be the key to a cure for tinnitus.
You can find all this and more at the link below:
http://www.hearinghealthfoundation.org/tinnitus
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Hi HearingHealthFoundation,
Welcome to the Forum.
Do you have any reference for this figure 90 percent of tinnitus cases occur with an underlying hearing loss? Such a figure does not correspond to lets say the members of this forum, who in the majority have perfect hearing (apart obviously from the interference of the tinnitus noise).
Also, on your website you state that tinnitus arises from a damage to the hair cells in the inner ear.This is hwever an outdated and indeed incorrect theory. Research in more recent years has shown that it arises in the brain and has little if anything to do with the inner ear (see in particular the research results I addressed in this forum at http://forum.mytinnitus.de/en/viewtopic.php?id=511 ).
Thomas
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Hi Thomas,
Thanks so much for your message. Below are a number of sources that include references for the 90% statistic that you mention.
As I'm sure you are aware, there are many causes of tinnitus that are currently being researched. One of the causes, damage to inner ear hair cells and hearing loss, is discussed on our website as occurring alongside of tinnitus. The research link you provide below provides another great avenue of tinnitus research and we certainly support all forms of research seeking to identify the many causes of tinnitus. As you read through the various articles on our website, you'll see that brain stimulation is one treatment approach we highlight as well.
Please feel free to let me know if you have any further questions.
Thanks again for all you do in making this forum possible and for bringing this community together.
Best Regards,
Tara Guastella
Program Administrator, Hearing Health Foundation
Sources:
Tinnitus in patients with chronic otitis media before and after middle ear surgery.
Kim DK. Park SN. Kim MJ. Lee SY. Park KH. Yeo SW.
European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology. 268(10):1443-8, 2011 Oct.
The more the worse: the grade of noise-induced hearing loss associates with the severity of tinnitus.
Mazurek B. Olze H. Haupt H. Szczepek AJ.
International Journal of Environmental Research & Public Health [Electronic Resource]. 7(8):3071-9, 2010 Aug.
Specific findings in distortion product otoacoustic emissions and growth functions with chronic tinnitus.
Hesse G. Schaaf H. Laubert A.
International Tinnitus Journal. 11(1):6-13, 2005.
[Tinnitus in noise-induced hearing impairment]. [Polish]
Kowalska S. Sulkowski W.
Medycyna Pracy. 52(5):305-13, 2001.
Otologic injuries caused by airbag deployment.
Mcfeely WJ Jr. Bojrab DI. Davis KG. Hegyi DF.
Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery. 121(4):367-73, 1999 Oct.
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Hi Tara,
Thank you for your response.
The articles you are citing seem to refer to a high-frequency hearing loss only. However, a reduced ability to hear high frequency test tones is only to be expected in the presence of tinnitus (which usually is high frequency as well). If the Tinnitus diminishes, the high frequency hearing will return again.
So, in fact, it is exactly the other way around, the apparent high frequency hearing loss is caused by the tinnitus tone.
Thomas
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Hi Thomas,
I've consulted with one of our tinnitus specialists and he informed me that he hears similar statements all the time in the clinic. Many say that their tinnitus interferes with their hearing and that they’d hear fine if not for their tinnitus.
Though, he said they would not have tinnitus if their hearing is normal (this is not to say there cannot be patients who have tinnitus and “normal” hearing). Tinnitus represents dysfunction in the auditory system in most cases (although it can be a pure misperception generated in the brain in some cases as well) and the most direct result of auditory system dysfunction is hearing loss.
The order really should be: auditory system dysfunction -> hearing loss and tinnitus (and other problems). Therefore it is not surprising to see tinnitus presents in the presence of hearing loss in the majority of cases as they are manifestations of the same disease process. So tinnitus and hearing loss just tend to present together (or about 90% of patients with tinnitus also show hearing loss of various degrees). It is the auditory system dysfunction that causes both hearing loss and tinnitus.
However, enhancement of hearing (via hearing aids, cochlear implant and other devices or procedures) often reduce tinnitus perception, probably through a masking effect, so clinically it is sometimes easier to explain that hearing loss can cause tinnitus and compensation of hearing can reduce tinnitus.
I hope this is helpful. Please feel free to let me know if you have any further questions.
Thanks for taking the time to read through all of the information as well!
Best Regards,
Tara Guastella
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Only way to know is to scan the inner ear and see if its been damaged. I do believe we all have tinnitus it just how fast it came on and how our brain was able to adjust. A slow loss of hearing would allow our brain to adjust and not notice tinnitus. I have no field of expertise just a guess. I basis it on the fact at times I can block out the tinnitus, even when its quite. When I keep my brain occupied I don't notice tinnitus. It comes back when I listen for it. Now if I could stop that I'd be cured.
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