Tinitis

ring ring
Dave, wish I could tell you something good, but maybe I can save you some time and money. I've looked at the tinnitus literature, cures, and talked on and off with doctors for close to three years. A lady friend has it bad, and we went to several docs and finally to a ENT hearing guru on the CA coast. Then I was diagnosed with cancer, had cisplatin, and got tinnitus myself, so I revisited the topic.

As far as I can tell there is no particular cure. There are diet and mineral regimens, lots of snake oil--I tried two, including Arches Tinnitus product--and studies on ear hairs in mice on the horizon, but nothing now. If it can be determind that the 8th cranial nerve has been damaged--which it can't very easily--as opposed to the ear hairs in the cochlea which are damaged by the cisplatin, then there is a surgery sometimes for the nerve problem. Hearing and tinnitus are linked, though you can get tinnitus without hearing loss. Usually marginal to moderate to severe hearing loss accompanies it when cisplatin is the suspected culprit.

Tinnitus has apparently been around since people started hearing. Some hopeful news is, at your stage, it can still go away. I've talked to people who had it like you have, and it clears up. Ongoing, you should have better days, as the intensity is not usually consistent.

The only real help I've found is in listening to masking noise. I use an Ipod shuffle when I'm out a lot. Check out "Simplynoise" on the web, for free masking sounds. For a dollar I downloaded their "brown" noise--best for my range--and looped it on the Ipod so it plays forever. SimplyNoise is also great for time on the computer as it's live and free from the website. I also use "Tinnitus Masker Pro" from Vector Media, which offers a range of sounds, but costs a few bucks.

If you hear of anything new or useful let me know. Best of luck to you. I hope yours lessens and goes away.

best, Hal

ToBeGolden said:

No Good Suggestions But...
Like so many things, hearing and balance are influenced by the balance of sodium and potassium. I would be mindful (watchful) of what you eat before a tinitis attack. There is actually very little chance that a sudden intake of sodium/potassium triggered the attack; but I think there might be a small chance.

I am not recommending a large change in diet, but possibly limiting high salt-content foods (popcorn?). I don't believe either the potassium nor the sodium is the culprit; but it is the improper balance between the two salts.

Sweating, of course, also alters the balance of the salts. If you notice that anything seems to trigger the tinitus, talk about it with you doctor.

I've had severe muscle cramps following exercise. These cramps were relieved by eating potassium rich foods. (Didn't take much; one banana was a "cure").

Potassium
Hi Golden, yes, I was going to mention potassium, but didn't want to look up the spelling. My friend who had tinnitus before I did, was placed on a special mineral diet which was high in potassium by and ENT. It didn't work for her, but is worth pursuing for anyone with tinnitus.

A lot of the over-the-counter fixes are potassium rich. Arches Tinnitus formula also has a lot of potassium, so there must be something to it (but maybe not). Arches was recommended by my ENT, as he said it had been clinically tested and showed some result.
I went to an accupunturist to try and get some tinnitus relief. She did some homework and found that the Arches people never had a study on their product. They used studies showing results with some of the ingredients in Arches to make their claim. So ENTs don't necessarily have the time to dig into the mystery of tinnitus.

Mine seems to be triggered by the fact that I'm awake. But, as said, there are times when it is fairly quiet.

best, Hal

Hi David

Sorry but there is not too much that can be done for this, I lost most of my hearing but it was due to the radiation affecting the ear drum. Talk to your ENT but I am afraid they will tell you they can do much for it.

Hondo