Overview of Possible Tinnitus Cures
With the reported thirty million Americans exposed to harmful noise levels from loud music or occupational noise on a daily basis, it is no wonder that the number of people with ear disorder also increases substantially. The disorders affecting the hearing organs are numerous and varied, ranging from the simplest to the most complex. One of more common ear disorders is tinnitus. This is a condition wherein the person subjectively hears an abnormal sound, most often a ringing sound, which no one else seems to hear. However, there are also instances wherein the sound can be heard by others—in such instances the disorder is called an objective tinnitus.
Although tinnitus is considered as more of a symptom rather than a disease in itself, it can be rooted in various causes. As such, there as many possible tinnitus cures that ear, nose, and/or throat specialists recommend based on the underlying cause. The pros and cons of treatments mostly used to treat tinnitus are also presented below. In the general, the following are the prescribed treatments for tinnitus:
- Drugs. Generally, pharmacological treatments are not used alone to remedy tinnitus. They are either prescribed in conjunction with other treatment modalities or to eliminate accompanying symptoms of the disorder especially in severe cases. The commonly indicated drugs usually include lidocaine, benzodiazepines, anticonvulsants, tricyclics, and a host of others. Most of the drugs work toward enhancing nerve transmission. The problem with using drugs is patient compliance in which patient refuses to take the drug after some time because of appearance of side and adverse effects such as drowsiness, dry mouth, nausea, blurred vision, and others.
- Surgery. This is used as a last resort to treat the disorder because of the high cost and discomfort associated with surgical procedures. People are first recommended other tinnitus cures before considering surgery. Before surgery can be performed, extensive diagnostic tests should be performed to determine the underlying cause because the type of surgical procedure that will be indicated is dependent on it. For instance, people who are confirmed to have tinnitus because of hearing loss are applied with an electrode to the affected ear which mildly electrocutes the ear cells, erasing the abnormal sound. There are several procedures which have been tried and tested to remedy tinnitus such as repair of the perilymph fistula and division of the hearing nerve.
- Cognitive-behavioral techniques. These entail the person with tinnitus to work to control the sound by mentally shutting the sound out. Most involve the person’s conscious effort to control the symptoms and to remain calm during instances when the disorder becomes severe. Because stress is believed to compound the annoying sound, its elimination will make the sound more bearable and within the person’s control. In this treatment option, the noise associated with tinnitus is not eliminated but rather afflicted people are taught to own the noise so that they proceed with daily activities accordingly regardless of the presence of the noise. There are many cognitive-behavioral techniques that have been proven to raise the quality of life of afflicted people.