What do bombs and iPods have in common? Both devices are making us go deaf. A recent spate of articles such as those in the New York Times and the New Yorker has been calling attention to a condition, known as tinnitus, characterized by “white noise” in the form of whistling or buzzing created in the absence of sound by an auditory system damaged by noise trauma. Although it affects over ten percent of men and almost fifteen percent of women over 65, tinnitus has not been widely discussed in the media until more recently, largely due to the growing population of younger victims. About half of the soldiers who have suffered hearing loss from exposure to explosives in Iraq and Afghanistan report symptoms of tinnitus, and, if a recent European Union study is correct, in the coming years many millions more will be affected due to the widespread use of personal MP3 players. Underground mass transit systems are also thought to be a culprit; and with seven cities in China alone building subways, there is no end in sight. It’s easy to imagine that the market for tinnitus treatments is larger than expected, given the increases, respectively, in terrorist activity abroad, the use of personal music players, and the rates of urbanization in developing parts of the world. There are only a handful of companies targeting this growing problem, one of them being Washington state-based Silere Medical. Silere is developing an electronic neurostimulation therapy, which they claim is the only treatment in existence that effectively suppresses tinnitus. Another device, developed by Pennsylvania-based Neuromonics, delivers soothing music embedded with broadband sound to stimulate the auditory pathway, helping the brain to filter out tinnitus. Other therapeutic devices rely on a variety of methods to reduce tinnitus in patients. The device developed by Northstar Neuroscience applies targeted electrical stimulation to the cerebral cortex.
Hearing Innovations’ (acquired by Misonix) HiSonic®-TRD device relies on a bone-conducted ultrasound. Sonitus Medical of California is developing a non-surgical tinnitus treatment that uses a sound pathway known as bone conduction, which is typically used in hearing aids. ADM Tronics’ Aurex-3 uses an applicator placed behind the patient’s ear to deliver vibratory and auditory frequencies, which are modulated by a tabletop unit. TinniTool by Sensorcom applies a low-level laser to the inside of the ear, which the company claims will help heal the damaged cells that result in tinnitus.
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