Newest therapeutic approaches for tinnitus matching and treatment

and independent of any external stimulation.2 In turn, subjective tinnitus can be classified based on whether the symptoms are caused by discernible disorders of the ear or acoustic nerve temporally associated with lateralised tinnitus on the side of the diseased ear (“otic” tinnitus) or whether the origins are unclear, as there is no association with evident disorders of the ear or acoustic nerve (“nonotic” or “essential” tinnitus).3 From a qualitative standpoint, non-otic subjective tinnitus is usually represented by a tonal noise or a complex noise that, while similar to known sounds, is never the same as an ambient sound. It originates from the subcortical auditory pathways that do not passively transmit sound signals, but instead regulate their intensity automatically (central auditory gain) and process the evoked neural activity.4 According to various case studies, the rate of tinnitus varies from 6 to 30% of the general population.5,6 Most people with tinnitus present a natural history characterized by habituation and tolerance to the “disorder”. Nevertheless, in 1% of these cases, tinnitus becomes a disabling condition, based on the level of activation of the limbic and autonomic nervous systems, and requires treatment. The theory of the involvement of the limbic and autonomic nervous systems in tinnitus can be attributed to PJ Jastrebov,2 who devised the neurophysiological model of tinnitus and the ensuing treatment strategy: tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT), which can ameliorate symptoms in more than 80% of cases.7,8 The aim of this longitudinal study was to explore whether a newer device based on TRT will be effective in providing relief in patients with both recent onset and persistent tinnitus due to multiple etiologies.