Around 15-20% of the population suffers from tinnitus* – a ringing, roaring, buzzing or hissing sound in your ears that only you can hear. It can occur in one or both ears and it can be constant or come and go.
Hearing aids can help treat tinnitus if you have a hearing loss; in fact, 90% of people with tinnitus have hearing loss. There is currently no cure for tinnitus, but research is ongoing.
There are a few reasons that hearing aids may be a good option for tinnitus treatment:
Hearing aids may help with tinnitus if your tinnitus is caused by hearing loss
Your ears have tiny hair-like cells that move when you hear sounds – those movements trigger signals to your brain that are then interpreted as sound. When these tiny hairs are damaged, whether through age or exposure to loud noise, they can send faulty signals to your brain that sound like ringing.
Treating your hearing loss with hearing aids helps your brain to hear the correct sounds and can minimize the faulty signals.
Another reason hearing aids may help with tinnitus is because they give your brain more sound input to interpret, which distracts from the sounds of your tinnitus.
Hearing aids may help with tinnitus because some come with built-in sound therapy programs
Many technologically advanced hearing aids come with built-in masking programs to help distract you from the sounds of tinnitus. These often sound like white noise machines and can be turned on and off via the smartphone app for your hearing aids.
If you struggle with the constant noise in your ears from tinnitus, schedule a complimentary hearing assessment today and find out if hearing aids are a good treatment option for you. Our providers are ready to help you!
*Source: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/tinnitus/symptoms-causes/syc-20350156#:~:text=The%20noise%20you%20hear%20when,especially%20common%20in%20older%20adults
