Personal experience with tinnitus retraining therapy.
We present the results of tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT) in a group of patients suffering from tinnitus and/or hyperacusia. Based on the scores from a specific questionnaire and the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), the patients were classified into five categories and began therapy according to Jastreboff's criteria. Depending on the individual case, therapy envisaged counselling sessions, ambient sound enrichment, sound generators and hearing aids. At the end of the 18-month period, therapeutic success was observed in 79% of the patients. The initial numerical values of the scale of the symptoms and the THI seem predictive of treatment outcome. The use of instruments (sound generators) increases the success rate, but the study also demonstrates the effectiveness of counselling and ambient sound enrichment. Failures mainly involved patients with hypacusia who refused to wear hearing aids, as this influenced the effectiveness of ambient sound enrichment and counselling. Paralleling the data in the literature, the results demonstrate the effectiveness of TRT, which cannot be attributed to a placebo effect given the extended duration of treatment.
Molini
Egisto
E
Otolaryngology and Cervicofacial Surgery Clinic, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.
Faralli
Mario
M
Calenti
Claudio
C
Ricci
Giampietro
G
Longari
Fabrizio
F
Frenguelli
Antonio
A
D000161:Acoustic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone; D003376:Counseling / Q000379:methods*; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014012:Tinnitus / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D016896:Treatment Outcome