Tinnitus May Be Triggered by Loss of Auditory Nerve [Study]

Tinnitus has remained a medical mystery for long. However, researchers recently learned that the condition may be linked to how the brain copes with nerve damage.

Tinnitus Could Be the Brain's Way To Cope With Nerve Damage

A new study led by researchers from Massachusetts Eye and Ear has found evidence that the nervous system's inability to tune out this phantom noise is being caused by overactive nerves. They have uncovered data to bolster one of the most popular theories regarding the source of that bothersome buzz.

Most ear disturbances, including exposure to noise, hearing loss, trauma, blockage, or infection, are linked to tinnitus. Those who are hard of hearing, deaf, or have hearing impairments may also be affected. It comes and goes for some people. Others find it to be persistent. If tinnitus persists for longer than three months, it is deemed chronic.

According to research team member and audiologist Stéphane Maison of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, tinnitus symptoms can be extremely debilitating for many patients, resulting in sleep deprivation, social isolation, anxiety, and depression, negatively impacting work performance, and drastically lowering their quality of life. This is in addition to the annoyance of having constant ringing or other sounds in the ears.

Although the exact cause of tinnitus is still unknown, the major idea suggests that it develops in the nerves that typically send sound waves from the body to the brain when there isn't a physical vibration producing the sound.

The theory's proponents believe it is the brain's attempt to compensate for hearing loss or deficiency. They also enhance our internal speaker system's background static to a loud buzz by increasing the volume when little or nothing is coming in.

"Our work reconciles the idea that tinnitus may be triggered by a loss of auditory nerve, including in people with normal hearing," Maison said.

A correlation was discovered between cochlear neuronal degeneration (CND) and self-reported chronic tinnitus. Even when the cochlea's sensory cells remain intact, the cochlear nerve can be harmed by excessive sound exposure and normal aging.

These reactions were greater in frequency the longer the tinnitus persisted. "Tinnitus sustainability may be dependent on the degree of peripheral neural damage," according to the researchers.

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Tinnitus Treatment

There is no cure for tinnitus at the time. However, those with the aforementioned ailment may find a viable remedy with Treble Health. They combine treatment for tinnitus with sound therapy by utilizing tactics grounded in cognitive behavioral principles.

They provide a tinnitus treatment that has been clinically validated - the Triple Maskers Bundle, which combines cognitive-behavioral coaching, mindfulness training, sleep headphones, and tinnitus maskers.

Tinnitus maskers and sound machines are two tools used in sound therapy. Pink noise or white noise are options. Pink noise is a mellow white noise, which is all the various sound frequencies played simultaneously. It offers soothing sounds, such as crickets and running water.

The closest thing to a tinnitus cure we have are tinnitus maskers. In order to address the source and potentially discover a solution, academics are working on the problem.

Researchers were able to completely eradicate rats' tinnitus, or persistent ringing in the ears, by stimulating a nerve in the neck while playing a variety of tones. The discovery paves the way for a potential tinnitus treatment in the future.