Tinnitus Treatments: Examining Supplements, Technology, and… : The Hearing Journal – LWW Journals
Some patients tried acupuncture, which worked for a while, but the ringing in their ears came back. Another patient found relief in running, saying it helped him regain a sense of control. Still another patient described the experience as “cool”—a reaction that took Fatima T. Husain, PhD, by surprise. Other patients, she added, were devastated.
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Tinnitus, which the CDC estimates may affect as many as 15% of all people in the Unit…….
Some patients tried acupuncture, which worked for a while, but the ringing in their ears came back. Another patient found relief in running, saying it helped him regain a sense of control. Still another patient described the experience as “cool”—a reaction that took Fatima T. Husain, PhD, by surprise. Other patients, she added, were devastated.
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Tinnitus, which the CDC estimates may affect as many as 15% of all people in the United States, is a common affliction. Despite the large number of people experiencing tinnitus, the disorder remains poorly understood, with no cure and few meaningful options for treatment. Still, rather than dash patients’ hopes for relief, Husain and other experts say clinicians can help tinnitus sufferers by encouraging them to find therapies and coping mechanisms that work at the individual level, even if those methods do not cure tinnitus or treat its underlying causes.
“The placebo effect is larger in tinnitus [than in other disorders],” says Husain, a professor of speech and hearing science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “As I’ve matured, I’ve realized, ‘why not just leverage the placebo effect?’”
The disorder, which the American Tinnitus Association (ATA) defines as “the perception of sound when no actual external noise is present,” is characterized by the perception of ringing, buzzing, “swooshing,” or other sounds that are audible only to the patient.
An entire industry of supplements and devices has sprung up around tinnitus relief, few of which have been validated by clinical trials and none approved by the U.S. FDA. This lack of relief can leave many patients frustrated and desperate. Audiologists say, however, that there is very real hope for patients with tinnitus, both in terms of coping mechanisms and ongoing research that produces real medical progress.
SUPPLEMENTS & HEARING AIDS
Products claiming to treat or cure tinnitus run the gamut from dietary supplements to sound amplification devices. A report from Healthy Hearing even mentioned that some dietary supplements claiming to treat tinnitus contain dangerous chemicals, including “ingredients that can be found in rat poison…and ceramic glazing.”
Not all supplements are dangerous, but that does not mean they will help. By marketing their pills as “supplements,” rather than medications, companies can sidestep the regulatory process that would otherwise require them to prove their products are effective.
“Supplements are not drugs,” says Fan-Gang Zeng, PhD, of the University of California, Irvine. “While they may be safe, their efficacy has not been evaluated or established.”
The problems extend to electronic devices as well. In June, the National Advertising Division (NAD), …….
