Question
New products claiming to treat tinnitus always seem to be appearing on the market, yet peer-reviewed research and clinical trials can take years to complete. Evidence-based practice is very important to me - how can I decide which treatments to offer in my practice?
Answer
That is a great question.
As you know, it takes three critical things to help a typical tinnitus patient. First, you need some sort of ear-level intervention or sound therapy. Second, you need a clinician who understands the tinnitus patient and is willing to work with, and help, him or her. Third, and equally important, is that you need a patient who wants to get better, who is willing to do his or her part in the process to get better, and who is willing to make the time investment.
While there are an array of devices and treatments to choose from, none offer the body of clinical evidence that the Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment does. One of the reasons for that is that Neuromonics manufactures and distributes the only FDA-cleared, patented and clinically proven medical device designed for long-term significant relief of tinnitus. Clinically administered and monitored, the Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment uses the non-invasive device, customized by trained providers to each patient's individual audiological profile, to deliver a neural stimulus that targets the brain's auditory pathways.
To help practitioners like you access the data, which has been published in peer-reviewed journals to which you may not subscribe, we have compiled a summary document. This provides the details on four clinical trials involving 555 patients, who demonstrated a consistent clinical benefit that persisted to 12 months in suitable patients. Citations are included if you are interested in reading the papers in their entirety.
The peer-reviewed journals and papers in the summary include:
- Ear Nose & Throat Journal, 2008;87:330-9. "Treatment of tinnitus with a customized acoustic neural stimulus: A controlled clinical study"
- Ear and Hearing, 2007;28:242-59. "The Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment: third clinical trial"
- Annals of Otology, Rhinology, and Laryngology, 2008;117:791-9. "Treatment of tinnitus with a customized, dynamic acoustic neural stimulus: clinical outcomes in general private practice"
- Trends in Amplification, 2008;12:210-22. "Treatment of tinnitus with a customized, dynamic acoustic neural stimulus: underlying principles and clinical efficacy"
The results not only speak to the long-term efficacy of the treatment in a variety of patient groups, but also demonstrate that the Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment repeatedly achieves clinically significant reductions in tinnitus disturbance and awareness for tinnitus patients.
I hope this evidence will be helpful to you in your clinical practice. You can download a copy of the summary document from our website, www.neuromonics.com.
Curtis Amann is Director of Sales for Neuromonics, Inc., which manufactures and distributes the only FDA-cleared, patented and clinically proven medical device designed for long-term significant relief of tinnitus. Amann works with audiology providers throughout world to help them achieve optimum results with tinnitus treatment for their patients.
For more information about Neuromonics you may also visit the Neuromonics Web Channel on AudiologyOnline.
