PWN1 Personal White Noise Generator - Tinnitus and Habituation
 

Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no external sound is present and is often perceived as “ringing in the ears.” Tinnitus may sound like humming, clicking, buzzing, ringing, hissing, roaring, whistling, or crickets. The sounds may be intermittent or constant, and may vary in loudness depending on stress, medications, noise-exposure and surrounding environment. Tinnitus can be classified as a phantom auditory perception due to the fact that there is no external sound corresponding to the patients’ perception of sound. This has made tinnitus hard to measure and difficult to treat.                                                                                                                                            Habituation occurs through the removal of the negative association attached to tinnitus perception, while detection of the tinnitus signal is preserved. Quiet broad band sound is used to achieve tinnitus habituation. Patients are directed to avoid silence and place themselves in an enriched sound environment. Also in many cases, broad band noise generated by devices worn behind or in the ear are used. The process takes 6 to 18 months. TRT is not a cure for tinnitus, but rather a therapeutic treatment with the goal of making tinnitus no longer an issue in one’s life.