The Use of Virtual Reality for Managing Chronic Tinnitus : The Hearing Journal – LWW Journals
Tinnitus is the sensation of hearing a “ringing” or “buzzing” in the ears without any external stimuli. Possible causes of tinnitus include hyperactivity in central auditory nuclei, 1 tonotopic reorganization in the auditory cortex, 2 noise exposure, 3 underlying conditions, 4 and use of certain medications. 5 Between 5% and 30% of adults suffer from tinnitus, 6 with about 50% having idiopathic tinnitus. 7
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Tinnitus is the sensation of hearing a “ringing” or “buzzing” in the ears without any external stimuli. Possible causes of tinnitus include hyperactivity in central auditory nuclei, 1 tonotopic reorganization in the auditory cortex, 2 noise exposure, 3 underlying conditions, 4 and use of certain medications. 5 Between 5% and 30% of adults suffer from tinnitus, 6 with about 50% having idiopathic tinnitus. 7
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Patients’ emotional well-being is affected by tinnitus, 8 including increased anxiety levels. 9 The amygdala and other nonauditory structures in the brain may be involved in tinnitus maintenance by mediating the emotional response in tinnitus patients. 10,11 Novel techniques like the use of vagus nerve implants have been explored for tinnitus mitigation. 12 Although there is no cure for tinnitus yet, effective management techniques include relaxation/mindfulness training, 13 amplification, 14 and sound therapy for both hearing aid users 15 as well as cochlear implant recipients. 16 Sweetow and Sabes 17 evaluated the effects of combining amplification and sound therapy for tinnitus management. The sound therapy included white noise and fractal tones from Widex Zen Therapy. 18 Participants reported a significant reduction in tinnitus annoyance after listening to both sounds but reported feeling more relaxed when hearing the fractal tones.
Stress reduction is a significant component in managing chronic health conditions. Distressed patients may turn to social media or mobile applications to explore solutions. 19–22 Techniques for reducing stress can decrease the impact of tinnitus. 23 A randomized controlled trial (RCT) discovered that 16 hours of therapy over two months led to significant reductions in tinnitus measures and reactions to tinnitus. 13
Therapy techniques using virtual reality (VR) have been shown to reduce anxiety in patients with chronic conditions. 24 VR uses specialized equipment that presents visual and auditory information to create specific simulated environments. The use of VR has proven to aid in acute pain management of patients receiving routine and invasive medical procedures. 25 VR also has proven to have significant effects on all affective domains mediated by the limbic system, 26 which is also involved in the perpetuation of tinnitus. 27 Therefore, VR therapy may lessen the engagement of the limbic system in tinnitus perception by delivering relaxation and sound therapy components.
The aim of the present study 28 was to explore whether the use of VR combined with conventional sound therapy helped in mitigating tinnitus and reactions to tinnitus as compared to conventional sound therapy alone.
STUDY PARTICIPANTS
Adults with …….
