Tinnitus and Hearing Aid Treatment

Tinnitus, commonly referred to as ‘ringing in the ears,’ can be caused by anything, from stress or hearing loss, to more serious health threats like tumors. Often, in spite of numerous exams, audiologists and other professionals cannot link chronic tinnitus to any one cause. Being told your tinnitus has no cure or cause doesn’t make it any easier to live with in daily life. While researchers continue to look into the causes and cures for tinnitus, many types of new therapies and technologies have been developed to help you cope with the symptoms, and one of these is a type of hearing aid.

How hearing aids help

Even if you don’t think your tinnitus is caused by hearing loss, it’s still important to have your ears examined by an experienced audiologist. During your evaluation and testing, they may discover even slight hearing loss that could be contributing to your tinnitus symptoms. Treating hearing loss may treat your tinnitus, at least partially. 

Hearing aids can be programmed and adjusted to help your ears shuffle out the ringing or buzzing sensation you’ve been experiencing. While tinnitus may not have a true “cure,” hearing aids help sufferers manage the condition and find relief.

Tinnitus maskers

If hearing aids alone do not alleviate your tinnitus, an audiologist may recommend a hearing aid that works together with a special sound generator. Instead of simply amplifying sounds from the environment, these devices create sounds internally that mask the sound you’re perceiving. This is described as “ear-to-head” noise.

The type of sound generation an audiologist programs into a tinnitus masker will depend on the type of noise described by the patient, since every person’s perception of tinnitus is different. This is why it’s important to be as descriptive as possible when discussing your tinnitus during a hearing exam. Even if the audiologist determines you don’t have hearing loss, they may still recommend you wear a tinnitus masker by itself.

Find relief from tinnitus

Tinnitus may not be curable yet, but it can often be effectively treated by hearing aids with sound generators customized to your symptoms. Find relief by contacting an audiologist to and taking advantage of this and other potential treatment resources now available for this common hearing problem.

If you’re not sure whether you’re experiencing hearing loss, tinnitus or both, don’t hesitate to reach out to an audiologist in your area. Hearing loss and tinnitus can be managed, just take the first step and talk to an audiologist today!