Role of self-induced sound therapy: Bhramari Pranayama in Tinnitus

Absract Objectives: Treatment of tinnitus is not ‘absolute’ in terms of its approach through a single therapy model. The more recent modes of treatment focus on attenuating somatic perception and on synchronizing the emotional component of tinnitus with more ‘positive’ physiological events in the body, so that the person does not correlate the presence of tinnitus with annoyance and a source of disturbance. Both these goals are possible with neurophysiological ‘habituation’ at proper synapses across the auditory pathway. The present study has been conducted to observe the effects of Bhramari Pranayama (BP) on both the physical and emotional aspects of tinnitus. Bhramari Pranayama is a ‘Yogic’ technique that involves the combination of a relaxing posture and a process of producing sub-tinnitus level humming sound during exhalation along with simultaneous pressing of the closed eyelids. Study Design: A group of patients with tinnitus was administered BP as a therapy. Three other groups of similar patients were given Ginkgo biloba, Masking therapy and a combination of all the above-mentioned modalities, respectively, as treatment for tinnitus. The outcome of the study was determined by analysing the pre- and post-therapeutic values measured for parameters such as: 1) Loudness; 2) THI score; and 3) Anxiety and Depression scale. Results: Demonstrated that BP as well as all the other modalities of treatment significantly reduced the post-therapeutic scores in all the parameters, in all the groups. Conclusion: We concluded that BP significantly reduced the irritability, depression and the anxiety associated with tinnitus. It relieved the symptoms in tinnitus possibly by 1) acting as source of self-generated sound; 2) inducing parasympathetic predominance in the neural milieu; and 3) by acting as a relaxation technique. BP may serve as a cost effective, frequently applicable adjuvant therapy for tinnitus that probably acts through neuromodulating principles.