Did you know that there are many people with good hearing who continually hear ringing or buzzing sounds, even when no sounds are being produced around them? This problem is known as tinnitus. In Quebec, 600,000 people are affected by tinnitus, with varying degrees of severity.

In some people the tinnitus is only occasional, while in others it is heard all the time. Buzzing or ringing sounds can be so disturbing that some people have a hard time going about their daily activities. Fortunately, this is not the case for everybody with tinnitus.

Frequently, tinnitus is associated with pathologies, such as otosclerosis, Ménier's disease, presbycusis, or noise induced hearing loss. Stress, allergies, the head and neck joints problems, and certain medications are among the factors that can cause the tinnitus, and maintain it.

Affected individuals often experience discomforts, with the tinnitus affecting sleep, provoking irritability and difficulty concentrating, and causing depression. Certain factors aggravate severity of the tinnitus. These incluse: noise, stress, fatigue, alcohol, coffee, etc.

As tinnitus is often associated with a hearing loss. An audiologist can do an evaluation and suggest various avenues for treatment. Medication or surgical treatment can be used in eliminating tinnitus, however, the long term results are not very positive. Alternatives do exist for the cases where neither medication nor surgery is possible. One of these alternatives is the use of instrumental treatment, such as auditory amplification or other tool which masks the tinnitus and make the situation more tolerable for the person. Behavioural treatments such as relaxations therapy or other such techniques allow the individual to exercice control over the perception of the tinnitus with the ultimate goal of reducing the tension caused by its presence. Talk to an audiologist, the professional that deals with hearing disorders.