Clinical Application of Tinnitus Retraining Therapy on Subjective Tinnitus

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Subjective tinnitus is heard only by the patient and is usually considered to have no acoustic source. Treatments of subjective tinnitus include medication, Tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT), psychological treatment, and electrical suppression. TRT is one of the most effective treatment for subjective tinnitus. However, TRT is not commonly done in Korea. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of TRT on subjective tinnitus. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted between March 2010 and October 2011. A total of 148 patients who were diagnosed as subjective tinnitus were included in this study. In TRT group, TRT was given with hearing aids or sound generator and medications. The result of Tinnitus was evaluated by tinnitus handicap inventory (THI), visual analogue scale (VAS) and tinnitogram. RESULTS: At 3 months, TRT group showed significantly improvement at 15.2+/-14.2 of THI, 8.1+/-2.1 by emotional score of THI, and 18.1+/-15.5 by length of noticeable time. CONCLUSION: TRT group showed better result than medication group according to THI and VAS. TRT showed good effect on emotional score of THI and length of noticeable time. However, TRT needs more time and effort of physician.