Tinnitus Loudness and Perceived Pitch-Frequencies Provide Diagnostic Information

i realize this research is 10 years old but it bears repeating

the tinnitus you hear" or percieve tells someething abouut the dysfunction in the ear and possibly the brain

from the summary

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abstract
"A French study found that just one in 123 tinnitus patients suffered no hearing loss. In the majority, a connection was found between the nature of their hearing loss and how they experienced the ringing in their ears.

The researchers examined the degree of hearing loss in the tinnitus patients and the reasons for their hearing loss. The results were collated with the patients’ descriptions of how they experienced their tinnitus.
Different kinds of hearing loss — different kinds of tinnitus

The results indicated that patients suffering from age or noise related hearing loss generally experience their tinnitus as a constant high pitched sound. Patients whose hearing loss was caused by Ménières disease or similar syndromes experienced their tinnitus as a varied and low hum.

Relations were also found between the degree of hearing loss and the frequencies of low hearing. The frequency of the tinnitus noise as described by the study participants was mostly directly related to the measured frequencies of their hearing loss. The loudness of the experienced tinnitus also corresponded to the degree of hearing loss.

The researchers believe that various measurements of the patients’ hearing may provide a simple and indirect test on which an evaluation of tinnitus levels may be based. In the treatment of tinnitus, it is particularly important to be able to record changes in the patient’s experience of his or her tinnitus.

Source: Characteristics of Tinnitus and Etiology of Associated Hearing Loss: A Study of 123 Patients, International Tinnitus Journal, 2002.

http://www.tinnitusjournal.com/detalhe_artigo.asp?id=176

 

all about tinnitus... http://books.google.pl/books?id=YSt...ical stimulation tinnitus description&f=false