Doctored music could ease tinnitus suffering

29th December 2009 London —  According to the research team from Westphalian Wilhelms University, individually designed music therapy may help reduce the noise levels experienced by people who suffer from tinnitus.

Tinnitus causes ringing, buzzing, roaring, hissing or whistling.

In the year-long study, participants’ favourite music were altered to remove notes which matched the frequency of the ringing in their ears.

The individuals reported a drop in the loudness of their tinnitus.

The theory behind the new technique is that removing the spectrum of noise associated with tinnitus from the music reduces activity in the brain relating to that frequency, alleviating the condition.

Lead researcher Dr Christo Pantev, from Westphalian Wilhelms University in Munster, said the approach specifically targeted the part of the brain responsible for tinnitus.

“The notched music approach can be considered as enjoyable, low cost, and presumably causal treatment that is capable of specifically reducing tinnitus loudness,” BBC News quoted Pantev as saying.

“It could significantly complement widely-used and rather indirect psychological treatment strategies,” Pantev added.

Dr Ralph Holmes, director of biomedical research at deaf and hard of hearing charity, RNID, said he would look in detail at the findings.

Holmes said: “While we find it encouraging there is new investment in treatment for tinnitus, we know there is no proven ‘cure’.”

Courtesy Asian News International/DailyIndia.com

About TInnitus

Tinnitus (pronounced from the Latin word tinnītus meaning “ringing” is the perception of sound within the human ear in the absence of corresponding external sound.

Tinnitus is not a disease but a symptom resulting from a range of underlying causes that can include ear infections, foreign objects or wax in the ear, nose allergies that prevent (or induce) fluid drain and cause wax build-up. Tinnitus can also be caused by natural hearing impairment (as in aging), as a side-effect of some medications, and as a side-effect of genetic (congenital) hearing loss. However, the most common cause for tinnitus is noise-induced hearing loss.