Combining Parts of Sound Retraining and Talk Therapy Can Give Relief
Combining parts of 2 established treatments for?tinnitus?in a new way can work, according to new research.
Tinnitus is a persistent ringing or buzzing in the?ears?that can be debilitating. Researcher Rilana Cima of Maastricht University in the Netherlands and colleagues used parts of sound-based retraining therapy and talk therapy in what they say is a unique way.
This approach worked better than usual care, they found.
“This was very successful in decreasing tinnitus severity, distress, and impact on daily life & general health,” Cima tells WebMD. The study is published in?The Lancet. Two U.S. experts had a mixed reaction to the study. One said the new research adds scientific credibility to the two approaches. Another said there is not much new in the study.
Tinnitus: Back Story
About fifty million people in the U.S. experience in tinnitus, according to the American Tinnitus Association. About 2M of the population has tinnitus so severe their quality of life is impaired. Those with tinnitus perceive a sound when no external source of sound exists. They may describe the condition as a ringing, buzzing, hissing, or whooshing in the ears. It can affect one or both ears. Most often, noise exposure leads to tinnitus, according to the American Tinnitus Association.
Another known cause of tinnitus is a head or neck injury.
Typically, many different treatments are offered, but with little evidence of effectiveness. Often, says Cima, a doctor will tell a patient with tinnitus: “Nothing more can be done; you have to learn to live with it.” In severe cases, patients can become depressed and unable to work or socialize.
Tinnitus: Combining Treatments
Cima assigned 247 patients with tinnitus to usual care and 245 to the specialized care.
Those in the usual care were seen by an audiologist to start. If the audiologist thought they also needed a social worker, the audiologist would refer them.
persons in specialized care got a grouping of audiology and?psychology treatments. The team included many health care providers, such as psychologists and other therapists. In typical tinnitus retraining therapy, counseling sessions and exposure to a neutral external sound are used, Cima says. What is new, Cima tells WebMD, is that they combined the audiological and psychological treatments within a behavioral framework. In her approach, the behavioral intervention & the sound intervention are carried out at the same time. “We believe that not the sound itself but the reactions (fear and misinterpretations) to this sound determine whether or not people will develop complaints,” she says.
She focuses on modifying the reactions to the sounds. Patients often want to avoid the tinnitus, she says. They do this by not wanting to stay in silent environments, for instance. “I say often to patients: ‘In order to [get used] to your tinnitus, you have to be willing to perceive your tinnitus.'” After that first step, those with more severe tinnitus went on to a second step, which included group treatment with a variety of therapists.
Combining Treatments: Results
After 12 months, those in the specialized care group reported recovered quality of life, less severity of the tinnitus, & decreased impairment compared to the usual-care group. Lots of had dropped out of each group. In all, 161 finished all 12 months of the usual care; 171 completed the combined approach. Ideally, Cima says, the patients can keep using the skills learned in the program. If they have remission, they can return for more treatment, she says.
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