Feb. 2--Among the many treatments for tinnitus is boring music. Really.
That's the approach they're taking at the University of Virginia.
Patients in the Tinnitus Treatment Program are using a specialized set of sounds to help the brain fight constant perceived noise in the ears. The approach is to help the brain deal with the excess input of "sound," rather than try to turn the input off.
The American Tinnitus Association estimates that more than 50 million Americans suffer from tinnitus in some form. About 12 million have a case bothersome enough to seek medical attention. And about 2 million, the ATA estimates, are so seriously debilitated that they cannot function on a day-to-day basis.
One local sufferer, former Greene County Sheriff William L. Morris, killed himself last week. "I hope that my death will help bring about some cure for those that suffer with tinnitus, by bringing attention to it," he wrote in a final note. "It is important that my life will not be wasted."
"I think it's sad when someone has to die to bring attention to a subject," said William Martin, director of the Oregon Health and Science University Tinnitus Clinic and Tinnitus Research Program.
Many sufferers aren't even aware of all of the resources available to them. Martin said his clinic has a history of gifts from people commemorating loved ones who suffered from tinnitus. Morris' daughter, Lisa, has said she hopes to promote tinnitus research in her father's memory.
"The complexity of the research makes it very time-consuming and very expensive," Martin said.
For one thing, tinnitus isn't a uniform disorder. It has varying symptoms, causes and intensities, and different types respond to different therapies, Martin said.
And because animals can't tell researchers what they're hearing and how much it bothers them, animal testing isn't practical, he said.
Martin said researchers now understand that, while it may emanate from the ear, tinnitus is, in many ways, a brain issue, like phantom limbs. On the other hand, they're still trying to figure out how to measure the condition, he said.
At UVa, researchers are using a product that uses repetitive music to train the brain to deal with tinnitus better.
The product is marketed by Neuromonics, whose U.S. headquarters is in Pennsylvania, and uses constant exposure to the same few pieces of music that "drown out" the tinnitus.
"It has to be something that's redundant," UVa clinical audiologist Liz Rabin said. She explained the plan is to "desensitize" the system.
So it's the same four tracks of music over and over and over for two to four hours each day.
When the first stage of the therapy is done, the music begins to have "valleys" when the music doesn't fully cover the tinnitus, Rabin said.
The hope is that the brain will learn how to treat the tinnitus like background noise, she said.
After eight or 10 months, the goal is to get the treatment down to perhaps two hours a week, for maintenance.
The treatment is a few years old and isn't yet generally covered by insurance, she said. But it has made a difference for some people.
"There are definitely a lot of patients that this is appropriate for, and those that are following the protocol are doing really well," she said.
According to the American Tinnitus Assoc-iation, there is no cure for the condition. It's not clear exactly what causes the noise, but several treatments can lessen it, or moderate its effect on sufferers' lives.
Other treatments include hearing aids, cochlear implants and therapy.
"People need to know that there are places in the United States that are absolutely dedicated to providing care to people who have tinnitus and have very powerful tools," Martin said.
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