Health
Related: About this forumTinnitus Sufferers Hoping Serenade Sound Therapy Can Relieve Ear Ringing
Tinnitus, a condition that causes people to hear sounds such as ringing in the ears even when all is quiet, afflicts at least 10 percent of American adults. Although theres nothing doctors can do to alleviate this discomfort permanently, new approaches to treating the problem are in the works. One of the latest is a sound-therapy device designed to produce unique tones that distract the wearers brain from more irritating sounds. The SoundCure Serenade Tinnitus Treatment System has received a hearty endorsement from the American Tinnitus Association (ATA), which invested $138,000 in the technologys development and this weekend is hosting a fundraiser in Portland, Ore., to raise additional money for tinnitus research.
SoundCure, a Silicon Valley startup, made the Serenade system available this past March. It is a handheld device with headphones that produces low-frequency modulated sounds the company claims provide more relief than the standard treatmentunmodulated tones or high-pitch white noise. The tones are customized for each patient based on that persons specific level of tinnitus, although the reprieve is temporary, experienced only when the Serenade is in use.
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2012/06/15/tinnitus-sufferers-hoping-serenade-sound-therapy-can-relieve-ear-ringing/?WT_mc_id=SA_CAT_TECH_20120619
mindwalker_i
(4,407 posts)emulatorloo
(44,178 posts)I guess this device could help you train yourself.
SheilaT
(23,156 posts)most of the time I can just ignore it. Sometimes it's just not there, or I don't notice it at all. When it's brought to my attention -- like reading this thread it's louder than ever.
Tracer
(2,769 posts)Probably due to 30+ years of singing in a choir.
Ordinarily, I ignore it -- but I've noticed that when it's particularly bothersome -- if I press firmly on the bones directly behind my ears, that the ringing gets almost completely tamped down.
I don't know why doctors or researchers haven't made the same observation, and drawn a conclusion between bones and vibrations.