Possible tinnitus cure?

Jim Reynolds · Post by **Jim Reynolds** » 9 Apr 2017 1:18 am

Bob, what you read is not true. It is damage to the nerve hairs (simplified) in the inner ear. Once this is removed you have no hearing in that ear, or tinnitus, or head noise. Putting up with tinnitus is a very miserable thing, a masking noise is about the only way, and as I mentioned a hearing aid. The less your loss the easier it is to adapt to hearing aid. It is not perfect, nor your normal hearing. Just remember all hearing aids do not adjust to musical instruments, and the pedal steel is the worst. The only thing that has saved me, is that I was a licensed fitter, dealer in Pa. for over sixteen years VA wanted to fit me with fit all's. After they found I knew as much, if not more then their audiologist, they let me choose my own hearing aid, and what I wanted on them. They work great. Not my God given hearing, but I can get by.

Ed Pettersen · Post by **Ed Pettersen** » 7 May 2017 6:44 am

After about the 10 minute mark he starts digging in to it a bit more in relation to triggers, symptoms, and treatments. Stress, sleep, stimulants, all big factors:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGq3MXQlRJs

Barry Blackwood · Post by **Barry Blackwood** » 7 May 2017 7:39 am

It is damage to the nerve hairs (simplified) in the inner ear.

I have a cochlear implant and can testify that the above statement is true. That being said, there are some amazing breakthroughs on the horizon that address the problem. The doctor who did mine told me that clinical trials are underway and in a few years there may be a whole new therapy regarding catastrophic hearing loss..
http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/vaop/ ... .3840.html

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 7 May 2017 11:13 am

Barry Blackwood wrote:
It is damage to the nerve hairs (simplified) in the inner ear.
I have a cochlear implant and can testify that the above statement is true. That being said, there are some amazing breakthroughs on the horizon that address the problem. The doctor who did mine told me that clinical trials are underway and in a few years there may be a whole new therapy regarding catastrophic hearing loss..
http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/vaop/ ... .3840.html

many many people of all ages with PERECT hearing .. I mean ZERO hearing loss have Tinnitus.. They do NOT have nerve damage, they have Tinnitus.. As I have stated, I have been examined by several of the top Tinnitus researchers at the Universiy of Buffalo which is at the cutting edge of Tinnitus research, and they are positive that Tinnitus is in the brain NOT in the inner ear.. If it was inner ear damage , people with no hearing issues would not have it, yet many do...

https://www.ata.org/news/news/two-types-tinnitus-brain

Barry Blackwood · Post by **Barry Blackwood** » 7 May 2017 11:43 am

Bob, I did not mean to imply that nerve damage was the cause of tinnitus, but I can tell you I now don't perceive any tinnitus in the ear that was implanted.

Ed Pettersen · Post by **Ed Pettersen** » 7 May 2017 1:50 pm

In that Ted talk he says that people with zero hearing loss can have tinnitus. But he also says it's the inner hairs so...lots to still be known on this I think.

John Billings · Post by **John Billings** » 7 May 2017 2:14 pm

I will be seeing a tinnitus specialist on the 17th. I have other ear issues like excessive wax, and sometimes water. I will post what she has to tell me.

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 8 May 2017 5:15 am

From If Our Bodies Could Talk by James Hamblin:

"Tinnitus is the leading cause of disability among military veterans, as well as a common cause of suicide. Quantifying the extent of the relationship is difficult, because the tinnitus and its resulting psychological torment--including social isolation and sleep deprivation--and often diagnosed as psychiatric conditions....

"The sounds often seem to be the result of the brain's backfired attempts at filling gaps in auditory input. It is a 'phantom sound' similar to the illusion that fills blind spots in our fields of vision, or the phantom pain and itch felt in amputated limbs. Based on this understanding, Daniel Polley, a tinnitus patient and audio-perception researcher at Harvard's Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, believes that there may be a way to reprogram the brain to stop perceiving phantom sound... audio pathways can sometimes be reset.

"Polley, who blames his own tinnitus on years of imprudent headphone use, is helping people by using music therapy. With an intensive testing process individualized to each person's hearing loss and tinnitus pitch, he removes specific frequencies from music and prescribes it. Relying on plasticity of neurons to form new connections that essentially ignore the ringing frequency creates a sort of intentional, purposeful blind spot.

"Audiologist Allen Rohe has seen this sound-training therapy work. Once of his suicidal patients, after a year of therapy, came to experience moments of complete silence."

Dan Robinson · Post by **Dan Robinson** » 8 May 2017 9:02 pm

We're not there yet, but some emerging research is promising:

http://www.hearingreview.com/2015/06/re ... inner-ear/

https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-03-20/ ... -inner-ear

Lee Baucum · Post by **Lee Baucum** » 10 May 2017 5:59 am

I don't know why; but, ever since I started wearing hearing aids, it seems that the constant ringing in my ears has decreased. Some days I can barely hear it.

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 10 May 2017 6:06 am

I think it's due to the focus we can achieve with appliances. An ear trumpet may have helped in old days.
Perhaps just it's by turning up the outer sound, but focus is done in the brain, which you're training with hearing aids.
I continue to look away from the scillia and apply: (See like you're deaf, feel like you're blind, and)
listen like you're paranoid.

Ed Pettersen · Post by **Ed Pettersen** » 10 May 2017 7:04 am

I just got back from the audiologist getting molds made for ear plugs (highly recommended if you have tinnitus BTW--mine are being made by ACS which allege you can hear all the frequencies and drop DB's from 10 to 30 if you wish). Anyway, she said that technically tinnitus is in the brain but it's the brain's neurons compensating for the damaged psilli in the ear. The annoying frequency pitch is in the brain but it's caused by damaged psilli and only damaged psilli. She also reiterated that stress, lack of sleep and stimulants exacerbate the condition. She added that it appears there may be treatment hope on the horizon as others have posted. Protect your ears!!

Barry Blackwood · Post by **Barry Blackwood** » 10 May 2017 8:19 am

I'm having trouble finding definitions for "scillia" and "psilli" anywhere. Are these terms being used as abbreviations for something else?

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 10 May 2017 9:31 am

I'm sure I have them misspelled.

Ed Pettersen · Post by **Ed Pettersen** » 10 May 2017 12:52 pm

Barry Blackwood wrote:I'm having trouble finding definitions for "scillia" and "psilli" anywhere. Are these terms being used as abbreviations for something else?

Oh hell, you want me to spell too?

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 10 May 2017 1:49 pm

Yeah, whaddyaexpect, me to Google it? Cilia. Often called hairs.

https://www.google.com/search?q=sensory ... e&ie=UTF-8

And other types of pasta.

Jim Smith · Post by **Jim Smith** » 4 Jan 2018 11:01 am

I saw this on Engadget today and it sounds potentially promising: https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/04/uni ... e=Facebook

They have tested it on real guinea pigs and are conducting more studies and tests.

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 4 Jan 2018 11:49 am

It does look promising.

I wonder if 'tinnitus' is the source of the phrase 'tin ear'?

Jim Reynolds · Post by **Jim Reynolds** » 8 Jan 2018 7:31 pm

Tinnitus is actually head noise. Everyone has it, but you don't hear it until you start losing your hearing. As our loss gets more profound the more head noise we hear. It is usually worse at night, when we go to bed. Everything is quit, and is when we can hear it the most. The biggest reason there is no cure, is that they cannot figure out, how God made us hear. They understand the outer ear, the middle ear, and some of the inner ear, but from the cochlea on, they have now medical idea, how our hearing works. It would be like trying to fix, your car. If you don't understand how it works. The hearing is a very complex thing. I have worn hearing aids for over 35 years now, and have worked with the hearing industry for years. Only recently has my tinnitus appeared, and when it really gets bad, I just put my hearing aid in. I don't have to increase the volume, because my loss is so great that they are outing out about 40db's, just turned on. I have about a 90% loss in both ears. Without my aids, I don't even hear my own voice. There is no fix for tinnitus. Don't be fooled.

Harry Dove · Post by **Harry Dove** » 8 Jan 2018 8:10 pm

I'll throw this out for what it's worth, your mileage may vary. My job put me in contact with so many people in close quarters that I would catch whatever was going around. I would be bad sick 6 or 8 times a year. For the last 15 years or so my wife and I have been making the transition to natural medicine. We joined a company called Nature's Sunshine, to get high quality herbs. Thirteen years ago I started on a combination of fenugreek and thyme. Immediately my sinuses and ears cleared up and I could hear better than I had in years. The ringing in my ears was greatly reduced. The added benefit: since then I don't catch a cold, flu, ear infection, nothing. I never get a flu shot; I don't need one. If you try herbs don't be fooled by cheap brands, pay the money and get the best quality. I know a lot of people think natural medicine doesn't work and there are a lot of people out there selling junk, trying to make a fast buck. Finding the truth takes work and those selling herbs are free to lie all they want. I also have a son who is just weeks away from being a MD, so I know both sides of the issue. I'll be 61 in a few days and I've cured myself of high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes, all by herbs, and what I eat. I don't take any medications at all. Changing your diet will change your life. Like I said this may not be for everyone. Just something to think about if you're so inclined.

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 9 Jan 2018 3:20 am

Jim's link says that "Due to the way their device works, it can only treat somatic tinnitus."
So there appear to be two different types, and no one answer for a remedy. And certainly, no definitive answer for a cause.
Mine seems to be all in my head.

John Billings · Post by **John Billings** » 11 Jan 2018 2:12 pm

I have a Chinese Heb Doctor. Very good results.

Jim Smith · Post by **Jim Smith** » 15 Jan 2018 12:16 pm

Here is an interesting article on upcoming devices for assistive hearing that will/might also help tinnitus:
https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/14/ass ... i-nuheara/