Researchers Find Tinnitus Cause and Treatment

[davidn3600]

Pennsylvania scientists have discovered the cause of the chronic disorder known as tinnitus, and have also found a way to treat it. Their goal is a preventive strategy for individuals whose work situations could cause them to be exposed to very loud noise.

University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers found that an epilepsy drug known as retigabine prevents tinnitus in animal models, according to ScienceDaily. They published their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Strictly speaking, tinnitus isn't a condition, but a symptom of some type of disorder, like hearing loss related to age, a circulatory system ailment, or an injury to the ear, the Mayo Clinic reports. Tinnitus sufferers describe the buzzing, ringing, roaring, hissing, clicking, and other sounds it creates in their ears as annoying to varying degrees. For some, it's debilitating. Since there's no cure for tinnitus itself, doctors attempt to identify and treat the underlying cause.

According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communications Disorders, about 25 million Americans have suffered from tinnitus. Among those who are at least 65, the disorder affects about 14 percent of women and more than 12 percent of men.

http://news.yahoo.com/researchers-tinnitus-cause-treatment-171200838.html

[FrodosPet]

1. Got my fingers crossed for this treatment

I have had a loud high pitched tinnitus for years. It gets pretty annoying, especially since I spend 8 hours a day 5 days a week on the phone, trying to get information from drunks in loud bars, people with thick accents, etc.

[Sherman A1]

7. Same here

To much work related noise through the years and I too have the lout high pitched ringing. I will be following this story, most certainly!

[silverweb]

2. I won't hold my breath.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]This drug seems to help prevent development of tinnitus after exposure to loud noise (which, by the way, is only one cause of tinnitus). Nothing here suggests the drug can reverse established tinnitus.

it would seem a lot more research needs to be done before we see any kind of "cure," because from what I've read here, this isn't it.

On edit: I've been hearing swarms of cicadas in both ears 24/7 since about 1991, and am very glad I finally just learned to live with it.

[Raine]

4. I'm not holding my breath either. It seems like so often this

hopeful "news" is put out to bring in money that still amounts to no cure. I know I'm cynical but it comes from seeing this kind of hype time and time again.

I've had 24/7 ringing in my ears since I was in high school. I had a bad infection that settled in my ears. I've learned to live with it too. Anymore I'm mostly aware of it when everything is quiet like in the evening, daily noises help to block it.

[RebelOne]

20. I have had tinnitus as long as I can remember,

and like you I have learned to live with it. In fact, I am amazed at the times when my ears are quiet, which doesn't happen too often.

[me b zola]

3. My tinnitus seems to be pressure related

My inner ear is like a barometer, which makes it difficult to dive ...but I always know when the weather is changing...

[Scuba]

5. The author doesn't seem to know the difference between prevention and treatment.

[undergroundpanther]

6. I have tinnitus

I just pretend its chirping crickets like I used to hear going to sleep in the summer as a kid before we needed air conditioning in our house. but it never stops, if I pay attention to it it seems louder.

I hope there is a cure for it one day .I got it from being too close to a lightning strike.I was not struck thankfully.

[leftyohiolib]

8. mine's from nerve damage so unless they can repair nerves ....

[East Coast Pirate]

9. I can go for long streaches without noticing it...

until I think about it...

[Heidi]

10. Kick!

[Junkdrawer]

11. I got mine to do Tubular Bells.....

not sure I want a cure.

[PDittie]

12. Ball bearing factory over here

I'm just glad for the days the Meneire's doesn't impact my equilibrium as well. "High pitched techno-crickets" is what my wife calls them.

[In_The_Wind]

13. A screaming Carvel Ice Cream machine at start-up is way too loud.

What? I can't hear you or birds singing.

[Buns_of_Fire]

14. After 20 years, I've come to ignore my personal brain-eating cicadas.

Except, of course, when I read something on the intertubes about tinnitus, which reminds me that they're still there and still telling me to run naked down the street, which I'm not going to listen to any more after that one unfortunate incident back in 2002.

[LiberalEsto]

15. I get tinnitus now and then, but usually for no longer than a minute

It's probably tied to the benign positional vertigo I've had for nearly 30 years. It used to be so bad I could barely walk. Now the bpv only bothers me when I have a sinus infection, or there's wind or high barometric pressure.

I hope this new medication can help all of you who suffer with severe tinnitus.

[Tracer]

16. There has to be a way to "cure" Tinnitus.

I have it -- probably from singing in choirs for 30 years.

But I've noticed that putting pressure on the bones behind my ears drops the noise by 80%.

Not being a doctor or scientist, I don't know where that leads in terms of alleviating this annoying condition.

[Duer 157099]

17. I can't even imagine how to begin to do this study:

The researchers conducted experiments that exposed mice to regulated amounts of noise, then identified those that had developed tinnitus. They discovered that those treated with retigabine immediately after being exposed to noise didn't develop tinnitus.

How in the world can you tell if a mouse has tinnitus?

[truegrit44]

18. I have had it since about 1998

I swear that it started within a month on going on blood pressure meds. My husband also has it and his started at the same time he began blood pressure meds also. I can't help but believe that it has something to do with it.

I've never been exposed to loud noises but I did have eardrum problem from when I was a teen which was a LONG time before I got the tinnitus.

I am so use to it now that I would probably freak out if it went away, LOL! The only time I notice it is like now when someone is talking about it, so we learn to subconsciously ignore it I guess.

[RebelOne]

21. That is strange because my blood pressure meds give me some relief from it.

If I don't take them, then the noise is much louder.

[warrior1]

19. I hope this is true.

[apples and oranges]

22. I had it when taking a bunch of caffeine and primatene/ephedrine (ECA stack)

Luckily it went away when I stopped. If anyone who has it takes in a lot of caffeine or asthma medication, you might want to consider alternative drugs.

[DearAbby]

23. I have it

I've had it so long, grown used to it. Used to have bad earaches when I was a child. Mom used to come in the middle of the night with warmed crisco oil. she would pour it slowly into my ear...about a dropper full, stop it up with a cotton ball...Now I don't know if this helped, it did ease the pain.

The condition started about 20 yrs or so ago. I learned to drown out my hubby's nocturnal noises by laying on "my good ear" against the pillow. I really had it so long, I think I would go buggy without it...imagine total silence?