Do You Think Tinnitus Will Be Curable In Our Lifetime?

And on that note, were it not for the current concussion crisis that's mainstreaming every paper with one of the lead side effects being hearing loss/tinnitus I would not be too optimistic.

However even Columbia Univ. Medical here in NY was just given 200M in inner ear/brain research expansion of it's facility. And that's just one school ALONE.

 

Your not being realistic about drug companies lobbying for a tinntius drug. Their are no lobbyists currently working for a specific tinnitus drug in the US because no US Corp is developing any Tinnitus related drug. So what if European Council approves something. I can guarantee you the big hearing aid and cochlear transplant companies will do what they can to block anything that could potentially ruin their profits.

 

There has to be big money in this. People who are desperate would pay any price. And there are millions upon millions worldwide.

 

Cochlear implants and Neuronomics can be replaced the same way Apple changed the way you communicate, watch and listen.

 

don't think big money wasn't behind fighting iTunes and Youtube. Likely far more money than is behind fighting to keep cochlear implants and neuronomics.

To think there's not a movement for a Tinnitus cure is nothing short of bad conspiracy.

 

Look at the ATA and the money they get...........its very little. They have to rely on donations which are next to nothing. But take a look at who the US Government gave a grant too.

The proof that research funds for a real "cure" are not on even the forefront of the US Government. They give their money to companies that enable them to work with the hearing aid companies who work with the VA.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/7/prweb10970617.htm

Check out where university funding into hearing loss-related research comes from and you will see that much of it comes from the noise amplication companies - it would be a brave research department head that embarked upon research or published results which displeased the people paying his salary.

 

If only this were true .

I despise the thought of a conspiracy nut. Lets discourse sincerely .

The following example is quite well known but unfortunately there are plenty of other examples of special interests doing precisely that:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoebus_cartel

By the way, there may be a few lessons from the past here:
Pharmaceutical industry:
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/sep/01/thalidomide-cover-up

From another industry:
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1971-1980-ford-pinto12.htm
Quote:
Experts calculated the value of a human life at around $200,000, while a serious burn injury was worth about $67,000. Using an estimate of 180 deaths and 180 serious burns, someone put on paper that the cost to redesign and rework the Pinto's gas tank would cost close to $137 million, while possible liability costs worked out to around $49 million.
snip
"Clamming up is what we did at Ford in the late '70s when we were bombarded with suits over the Pinto, which was involved in a lot of gas tank fires. The suits might have bankrupted the company, so we kept our mouths shut for fear of saying anything that just one jury might have construed as an admission of guilt. Winning in court was our top priority; nothing else mattered. And of course, our silence added to all the suspicions people had about us and the car."

 

Not a realistic comparison you are comparing two completely different industries and target markets.

 

Cures are very rare in medicine. None of my chronic conditions have been "cured" and I've been told by doctors straight up they don't see a cure coming in the near future.
Successful treatments are much more common and I don't see why that shouldn't happen for tinnitus.

 

If tinnitus were a natural thing then why does some go away completely? It GOES AWAY. Something happened. Its proof it can be turned off and it will with what our brain is missing once tinnitus appears. Mark my words. It will be able to be treated , not cured but who cares as long as the noise is tamed.

 

I think the problem Grace lies in the root reason for the tinnitus and that varies from person to person. If your tinnitus is due to permanent auditory damage than no, I feel a cure is a long way off. If its due to other reasons than yes sometimes it just goes away. There is no way to repair damages cilia hairs in your cochlea, but their may be a way to target the affected area in the brain where the damaged hairs are sending the impulses to. That's what I am hoping for.

 

Well yeah, i mean theres noise induced which is number 1.. Then theres drug induced which is up there too and then any other cause. Obviously the noise induced cant regain any hearing they lost if they lost any.. But the neurons can stop firing out of whack thats what there working on. That story of a guy who had T his whole life due to riding tracters and working on a noisy farm suddenly had a stroke and his T disspeared so why? It can be turned off. Some do some dont but those that do theres a reason. My T was cripling for 2 days after noise exposure then just dropped down to mild T and now its barely Anymore. Somethings happening thats all im saying. I guess some neurons quiet sooner or some never do and thats why were here cause ours didnt but they are on the right track with quieting it... Not curing but TREATING.. And thats not a long way off.

 

I doubt there will ever be a "cure" in our lifetime. My doubts are based on a variety of reasons.

First, there is a "natural level" of tinnitus, i.e., when placed in a very quiet room, many people can hear some tinnitus. How on earth do we devise a treatment to cause the brain - the most complex organ - to get back to a "normal" level of T?

Second - and this will be unpopular - many out there do not view tinnitus as a "big deal." In fact, many with T have never had a problem with it. And many that do not have T have no idea about what it is like - I barely knew about T before I had it. But I did know about heart disease, cancer, diabetes - even though I do not have any of those illnesses. The public at large does not view this as a huge problem. The demand for a cure is not as large as the demand for cures and treatments of other conditions.

FWIW, once I forced myself to accept that this would be a lifelong condition, I started making progress.

 

@pef

I personally think that this "natural level of tinnitus" combined with "it's just a harmless sound" is for sure the biggest reason why, to this day in 21st century, there is no cure or relief for tinnitus.

I know for sure that I never heard any noise from my ears, ever, there are also many others who will say the same. So telling us that everyone has tinnitus is the biggest BS based on some crap research or study done 50-60 years ago.

Can you imagine if cancer research was still based on belief that cancer is incurable and deadly???
To this day every single person who gets cancer would die!
But guess what? That's not the case!
Why?
Because billions and billions of dollars are poured into cancer research, there are survivors, many of them.
Prevention is the key as well, telling us to watch for changes here and there, check your breasts, Pap smears..... leads to early detection.

Tinnitus on the other hand is completely ignored, no prevention, nobody tells young kids to look after their ears, no ear plugs given when they attend mega loud events!
Imagine how many tinnitus cases could be prevented by raising awareness and teaching people about possible triggers.

I'm furious that influential people are doing nothing about it, furious that they are still telling us to get used to it, telling us it's just a neutral stimuli....
Yeah right!
Those people are to blame for no cure and for tinnitus sufferers still being treated like 500 years ago!

 

Thought you would have observed that an opinion based on this study is just plain WRONG!

 

I agree. This is a load of hogwash to say everyone has T. Look, after 3 months my tinnitus went away. One of the things I'd do is go to my nurse's office at work and sit in the sound treated room. Now, this room wasn't sound proof, but it's where we test employee hearing and it's beyond quiet in there... I'm sure everyone on this board is all too familiar with this as just about all of us have had our hearing tested.

Any way, I'd sit in there and purposely try to listen to my tinnitus, and I couldn't hear it at all, not even s little! Now, I can hear it all the time, whether I want to or not, and I can hear it even in rooms that have other noise. In fact, I have some white noise playing as I write this and I can still hear it. So I don't believe for a second that tinnitus cannot go away, because mine did, even if temporarily. And I couldn't hear it even in an environment that was quieter than I'd ever be in in normal environments.

 

Obviously we feel differently. Isn't it wonderful that the fate of mankind doesn't depend on us agreeing!

Dr. Stephen Nagler

 

That was funny, but on a serious note, I can't fathom how a doctor with obviously allot of merit and of high education can have such a strong opinion based on such a flawed study!

Rich

 

Well, obviously I do not consider it to be a flawed study.

But here's the thing. Flawed study or not, I would love to be wrong in my opinion that tinnitus will not be curable in our lifetime. Indeed, I have donated thousands and thousands of dollars to tinnitus research towards a cure in the hopes that I am wrong.

Bottom line? Tinnitus will either be curable in our lifetime or not - and my opinion on the issue will not influence that outcome in the least. Nor will yours.

Dr. Stephen Nagler

 

I suppose that's why your a doctor of medicine and not a scientist! (said respectively).
Believe me I have studied,(as a hobby) evolutionary biology as well as theory and I know what is proper scientific study and what is not, and this, definitely is not!

The rest I can agree with you on.

Rich

 

Dr Nagler, the fate of mankind may not depend on us agreeing here, but for sure the outcome of tinnitus problem depends on people like you.

The person of your education background and influence could do A LOT, if only, just for a minute, you would drop your "do not care what tinnitus is doing" glasses and realise that not everyone is "so lucky"!

I'm sorry to say but, your way of thinking is exactly what's in the way of finding a cure!

Times are changing and so should your opinion, I'm sure as a medical doctor you have to keep up to date, same goes with tinnitus.
I would love to see you helping us here to start moving things forward, instead of being stuck in the same mud as 50 years ago.

 

No it doesn't. The outcome depends on the work of researchers, work that I help fund with my hard-earned dollars ... as I presume do you.

I was dealt the same lousy hand that everybody else on this board was dealt. And any "luck" involved in my getting to the point where I am today ... is luck I made for myself. I see my role here as providing information and at the same time serving as living proof that tinnitus can be overcome.

So now I'm the reason there's no cure.

I believe that I do help here - quite a bit in fact. My views may not suit you, but we'll both get over it. And as far as your accusation that I don't keep up, you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.

Now @Markku and his fellow admins really don't like back and forth bickering - and I can't say that I blame them. So I'm going to leave this thread before I say something I'm going to regret.

Here's to silent days ahead for all.

Dr. Stephen Nagler

 

Bro i couldnt have said it better myself. what you said was 100 percent the truth. its bugs me that researchers, delusional sufferers, doctors & the media downplay the problem of tinnitus. If you went to a local pub or club , and took out a dog whistle and blew on it, for not even 30 seconds , you more then likely would get kicked out or the crap beat outta you.
Dude trust me if SUFFERERS from 30 20 years ago was REALLY raising hell about tinnitus, i promise you we would have been treated. And i know people may get tired of me preaching and saying the same ish over and over. BUT EY , PEOPLE OUR TINNITUS AINT GOING NO WHERE, Nor will it get treated. Unless of course we get serious.
Im not even gonna lie, not even a year ago when i was tinnitus free I didnt even know this condition existed. I thought only crazy people heard noises from their head. 1 year ago like any typical normal guy i was blasting music while clubbing movies etc etc. No one ever told me about this. Had the A.T.A did their job correctly i doubt 2/3 of us would even be here. but back to the subject.
WE HAVE TO SPREAD MASSIVE AWARENESS. WHETHER THROUGH SOCIAL MEIDA OR FACE TO FACE.

heres my theory in a nutshell
( I encourage better yet i DEMAND everyone to memorize and try doing things to help this theory come true )
ok so
Spreading awareness = Mass Public Awareness= Worried Society = Businesses losing money due to paranoia Of Chronic Tinnitus = Governments & Multiple businesses investing in pharmaceuticals = a Treatment or cure.

My fight for tinnitus is for life. I will not stop until i stop breathing.
but on the flipside im not waiting 10 20 30 40 years for a treatment neither.
I want to hear silence when i sleep.

 

@T-Saiyan

I have posted a new thread addressed to Markku, director of this board, asking for some ideas how to start moving things.
We are on our own, our voices won't be heard unless we speak up.
And I'm not kidding, it's a sad reality that tinnitus problem is ignored and downplayed not just by medical profession but also by people who have it but "recovered".
Habituation is not a solution, nor should it be preached as the only possible option.
We need, if not cure, something to provide relief.
So if you have any suggestions on how to start please let us know!

 

Does the 80% of the population that doesn't have tinnitus have a perfect auditory system, i.e. perfectly intact hair cells etc ? Or do their brains just not react to any damage in the same way that ours have.

 

I think we can all agree that there have been many promising results in the scientific field. Working out treatments takes a long time so the fact that there isn't smth out now doesn't mean that research isnt being done.
Also, people might know about heart disease, cancer etc. because so many people have this type of conditions due to unhealthy lifestyle. In the mid 20th century smoking was not considered dangerous and look where we are today. Most people are ignorant about their health and that's what eventually brings to the changes. Hearing loss is becoming a massive problem and sooner or later governments will start to think of noise regulations.

 

This picture was posted in another thread once:

Tinnitus Research: 1970-2013
Total number of tinnitus research articles published in peer-reviewed medical journals during each 5-year period Courtesy ofNIH PubMed

 

I've had T for 24 years. I've had a few relapses. Why? I do not know. I have habituated three times working on my fourth. I'm happy to live in an habituated state. It usually takes 12-18 months. In my 5th month. It sucks.

 

All we have to do is

Follow the money trail!!!

Hearing loss generates billions of dollars a year in revenues and those companies will fight very hard to maintain their profits, and have huge resources to call upon in that struggle. Check out where university funding into hearing loss-related research comes from and you will see that much of it comes from the noise amplication companies - it would be a brave research department head that embarked upon research or published results which displeased the people paying his salary. The US government has handed out a big cheque to another hearing aid company (Neuromonics) to 'cure' the hearing-damaged veterans coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan by giving them glorified MP3 players which make noises like early kids video games and cost several thousand dollars each! I wonder how that deal got brokered?.

I additionally suspect that 'Big Pharma' is also not too keen on the public realising what a problem hearing loss is as so many 'over the counter' medicines (eg. Asperin, Paracetamol, Codine, Ibuprofen), let alone prescribed medicines appear to have ototoxic effects - the 'legal' term for 'may totally ruin your hearing' appears to be 'may cause dizzyness or vertigo', hidden in small letters somewhere in the folded-up leaflet hidden in the box the tablets came in. Again profits would take a huge hit if people realised the side effects of the headache tablet they were about to buy, or discussed possible side effects of prescribed medicine with their GP, and whether the antibiotic they were being offered was really necessary or did taking it just mean they could maybe be back at work a day or two earlier...

When I was at school in the we were forever being told to brush our teeth (even being given free toothbrushes and toothpaste on occasion, kindly donated by pharmaceutical companies), warned about the dangers of fireworks, advised about protecting our eyes, being safe near traffic, not smoking, drinking or taking drugs, practicing safe sex etc etc but I never heard one word about protecting our hearing. Former US presidents (Clinton & Regan), A-list actors, famous TV presenters/anchors, rock stars, journalists (particularly music journalists) suffer from tinnitus and hearing loss but we still almost never hear anything about the dangers of noise. I consider myself reasonably well informed, but the first time I realised that hearing loss meant *more* and not less noise in my ears, and I heard the term 'ototoxicity' was after I came down with tinnitus over a year ago. Something very strange.

 

God I hope your right I'll be first in line
God Bless stay strong