Tinnitus

Although tinnitus is defined as an internal auditory sensation, external auditory stimuli can mask tinnitus under some circumstances. High-frequency vibration delivered as bone conduction stimulation is effective in masking high-pitched tinnitus. In this preliminary report, somatosensory stimulation in the form of low-frequency muscle vibration can also mask high-frequency tinnitus. Somatosensory stimulation provides fast, immediate relief, […]

The cause of objective tinnitus provoked by palatal and middle-ear myoclonus may be identified by magnetic resonance imaging of the central nervous system in the Guilliain-Mollaret triangle or it may be idiopathic. The idiopathic cases are rare. From the literature, one can perceive the following unanswered questions: (1) Are palatal and middle-ear myoclonus different entities […]

Tinnitus is a common otological symptom. Usually it is subjective (perceived only by the patient); very rarely is it objective (heard by both the patient and the examiner). Objective tinnitus due to middle-ear myoclonus is extremely rare, with only a few case reports published in the literature. We present three cases of objective tinnitus caused […]

Masking of tinnitus is possible using high audio frequencies and low-frequency ultrasound. The mechanisms involved in reception and perception of both audio frequencies and ultrasound are identical, with the exception that ultrasound interacts with an intermediary site, the brain. We proposed brain ultrasonic demodulation as the means of place-mapping ultrasound on the first few millimeters […]

About 15% of temporal bone fractures are produced by blows to the occiput. The fracture line begins in the posterior fossa, at or near the foramen magnum, crosses the petrous ridge through the internal auditory canal and/or the otic capsule. Therefore it is thus called a transverse fracture. In transverse fractures of temporal bone, due […]

Hyperacusis is mainly a consequence of the noise level in the twenty-first century, owing to dramatic changes in people’s lifestyles. Of every 100 people with otological complaints (e.g., tinnitus and hyperacusis), 20 are affected by hyperacusis. Because of its high incidence, this symptom has long been the subject of investigation.Nine patients (eight female, one male) […]

Depression is a mental state of depressed mood characterised by feelings of sadness, despair, and discouragement. Depression ranges from normal feelings of “the blues” through dysthymia to major depression. It in many ways resembles the grief and mourning that follow bereavement. There are often feelings of low self-esteem, guilt, and somatic symptoms such as eating […]

Twenty percent of people endure tinnitus to a degree that their quality of well-being and productivity in life are impaired, and up to 60% report depression. Four measures are widely used to assess tinnitus-related distress, yet the relationship among all four measures or their relationship to relevant psychiatric variables has yet to be studied. This […]

This reports recommends the consideration of development of additional outcome measures to be used as a battery of subjective self-assessment questionnaires for patients with tinnitus. The goal is improved overall care for the tinnitus patient. The name of the battery of outcome questionnaires is TOP. Five existing outcome measurements have been incorporated into the profile […]

This study attempted to determine those factors important for predicting the experienced severity of tinnitus. For this purpose, we examined affected patients’ perception of tinnitus as an illness, comorbidity, scores on locus of control, length of time since onset of tinnitus, pitch and loudness of tinnitus sounds, and depression. One hundred and forty-nine patients (72 […]