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Lives 'devastated by tinnitus'

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Lives 'devastated' by tinnitus

Research into the effects of tinnitus - a buzzing or ringing in the ears - shows that it has a profound impact on all aspects of people's lives, and reveals that more than one in five affected people believe the condition was caused by noise at work. The findings come from an online survey of 900 sufferers carried out by two leading charities in the field of hearing loss. They found the 23 per cent who hadn't told their work colleagues about their tinnitus said this was because they were concerned it might affect their job prospects. Over one in five (22 per cent) respondents thought that workplace noise caused their tinnitus. More than 40 per cent said their condition had a negative effect on their personal relationships. The research was carried out by the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the British Tinnitus Association (BTA) to mark the start of the first National Tinnitus Week. 'The results of the survey confirm the devastating effect that tinnitus has on the relationships and work lives of thousands of people in the UK,' said RNID's Karen Brunger. BTA chair Ewart Davies said: 'Although tinnitus is not life-threatening, it can be very stressful. It is important for people to know that the BTA and RNID can offer the support and advice that is needed to take control of the condition.' They say although tinnitus cannot be cured, it can be managed by using sound therapy to distract people from the buzzing or ringing, or habituation therapy to alter sound response systems. People are also advised to practise relaxation and to consider using a hearing aid if they also suffer hearing loss. It is estimated that 4.7m people in the UK experience tinnitus in one or both ears.

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