1-800-230-1953: The Malady of Tinnitus - Part 6 - veterans and tinnitus-related disabilities, tinnitus and non-surgical help

Malady of Tinnitus: veterans & tinnitus-related disabilities and non-surgical help Part 6
Veterans & tinnitus-related disabilities In the recent Sound News bulletin published by the Hearing Loss Association of Lane County, Oregon, a very interesting piece of news appeared, relating to tinnitus. As many of you know, many of our seniors suffer from hearing loss due to damage done during WWII as well as other service-related situations. The Veterans Administration has recently published figures revealing that 339,573 veterans had tinnitus-related disabilities in 2005, which is an increase of 144,243 in 2000. The amount paid to veterans with tinnitus in 2000 was $150 million; in 2005 it had climbed to $418 million! According to David Fagerlie, the CEO of the American Tinnitus Association (ATA), Portland, OR, "We will have to spend more on veteran's disability compensation for tinnitus and other hearing damage over the coming years than for any other medical injuries from The Iraq and Afghan wars." Tinnitus: Non-surgical help Part 5 broached the subject of surgical intervention for tinnitus. Now, we will explore other medical interventions. Definition of Tinnitus Because tinnitus is a symptom, and not a disease, a doctor should explore all possible causes for tinnitus in a patient. Quoting Betty G. Weiss, M.S., in her article, Medical Intervention for Tinnitus, which was published in the December 2000 Tinnitus Today magazine, page 12, "Tinnitus is defined in terms of its location (in one ear, in both ears, in the head), its characteristics (continuous, intermittent, pulsatile, clicking), and its impact on a person's life (tolerable or intolerable). In order to determine any contributing factors and an appropriate treatment, the patient should be examined in order to rule out all active disease processes or conditions that can be managed by medical intervention." Max Ronis, M.D., Professor Emeritus at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA, is renowned in the field of tinnitus research. He suggests exploring: diet, household products, prescription medications, over-the-counter drugs, and even social activities that may be associated with causing or aggravating tinnitus. Diet In the area of diet, he recommends eliminating caffeine, salt, cider vinegar, soft drinks, and alcohol. Some people find that Omega-3 fatty acids help, so eating salmon may be very good for tinnitus sufferers. Household products Household products can aggravate one's tinnitus as well. Dr. Ronis advocates eliminating the use of perfumes, antiseptics, cleaning chemicals and suntan lotions. Prescription medications He also warns about the use of prescription medications. Look at the noted side effects of a drug. All medications have a list of side effects. If they cause tinnitus or any toxic effects on the ear, this will be listed. It's important to reduce or eliminate one's exposure to such medications. Over-the-counter drugs Over-the-counter drugs such as aspirin and aspirin-related products (Ecotrin, Bufferin, ibuprophen, Midol, Aleve, Pepto Bismol, Anacin, etc.) and antihistamines are known to bring on or aggravate tinnitus. Social activities Dr. Ronis also suggests evaluating your lifestyle---determine if certain activities you participate in may have caused or aggravate your tinnitus. Find out if you have a family history of hearing loss and/or tinnitus. 4 Methods of treating tinnitus According to Dr. Ronis, there are four components to treating tinnitus. First, one needs to resolve medical/surgical issues. Second, acoustic therapies should be implemented. Third, pursue counseling and education. Fourth, pharmacological management can be incorporated into the overall treatment plan. Using herbs Some people even find relief by using various herbs. We need to remember that homeopathy has been practiced safely all over the world for more than 200 years. Ginkgo biloba and kava kava have reportedly brought relief. Melatonin and megadoses of vitamins and minerals have also shown to be efficacious for many people. Occasionally someone will report benefit from using niacin. Intractable tinnitus and St. John's Wort (Hypericin) St. John's Wort (Hypericin) was used in a study on intractable tinnitus. Intractable tinnitus is one of the most common forms of tinnitus. This means that there are no organic causes for the tinnitus—no tumor, infection, drug, etc., is causing the tinnitus. In addition, no vitamins, sedatives, analgesics, etc., have proven to improve the tinnitus for at least one year of therapy. In this particular study, something very interesting emerged. While hypericin did not change the intensity of the tinnitus when measured objectively with Tinnitus Matching Level (TML) audiometry, 68% of the tinnitus patients' subjective reaction was that they felt that hypericin gave them relief from their tinnitus. This leads scientists to conclude that intractable tinnitus has a mostly central cause (within the brain) with hyperactivity or hypoactivity of neurons coming or going from the brain. As we've noted before, everyone is an individual. What one person finds helpful may not prove true for someone else. Dr. Ronis does advise to always weigh the "gain versus risk factors" in pursuing options dealing with tinnitus.

(Article 0706, Part 6. Originally published January 2007)
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