Researchers Develop Headphones That May Treat Tinnitus by Rewiring the Brain

These headphones can potentially cure tinnitus using mirror therapy.
These headphones can potentially cure tinnitus using mirror therapy.

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Could these be the tinnitus cure we’ve all been waiting for?

Researchers have developed headphones that can treat tinnitus, a condition that causes ringing in the ears. Using Auditory Mirror Therapy (AMT), this works by flipping the sounds between ears to ‘rewire’ the brain and reduce the perception of tinnitus.

Tinnitus affects around 10-20% of the general population. However, the main treatments for tinnitus focus only on managing symptoms rather than curing the underlying issue. There’s currently no known cure or FDA-approved treatment for the condition.

That’s why, this new device offers hope to those who have long been searching for relief.

Auditory Mirror Therapy for Tinnitus

Clas Linnman's experimental therapy aims to change how the brain interprets tinnitus. (From: Mass General Brigham)
Clas Linnman’s experimental therapy aims to change how the brain interprets tinnitus. (From: Mass General Brigham)

AMT is a non-invasive therapy. This was developed by Clas Linnman, PhD, an assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.

The therapy involves wearing specialized headphones that flip sounds completely.

Basically, when someone wears the headphones, they might see a person talking on their left side. But, the sound of their voice would be heard as if they were on the right side.

This gives conflicting sounds and visual signals to the brain, so it learns that sound localization is not reliable in this situation.

The idea behind AMT is similar to mirror therapy for phantom limb pain.

How mirror therapy for phantom limb pain looks like. (From: Vilayanur Ramachandran)
How mirror therapy for phantom limb pain looks like. (From: Vilayanur Ramachandran)

“You can think of tinnitus as phantom sound the same way as phantom pain: there’s no external source of the signal. It’s generated, we think, somewhere along the pathway from your cochlea to your brain’s auditory cortex.” says Linnman.

“Our idea is to kind of mess up the brain’s integration between vision and sound, so that you see something on one side, but you hear it on the other.”

By introducing a big error into the system, the therapy helps the brain reinterpret the phantom noises from the cochlear pathway. This theoretically leads to a reduction in the perception of tinnitus.

The therapy works by messing up the brain’s multi-sensory integration, forcing it to rely more on visual cues than auditory ones. This process is thought to help rewire the auditory connections and reduce the perception of tinnitus over time.

Clas Linnman holding the headphones used for the Auditory Mirror Therapy for tinnitus. (From: Harvard Catalyst)
Clas Linnman holding the headphones used for the Auditory Mirror Therapy for tinnitus. (From: Harvard Catalyst)

“Humans are visually oriented — our vision is much more precise than our hearing, so if the sound is not perfectly synched with the vision, we trust our vision.” says Linnman.

“The idea is that this disruption can, like in mirror box therapy, help readjust the brain model of the world.”

Promising Results From Pilot Studies

Clas Linnman's tweet sharing the study's findings. (From: X/Clas Linnman)
Clas Linnman’s tweet sharing the study’s findings. (From: X/Clas Linnman)

Early pilot studies have shown promising results for AMT.

In their initial trial, 18 participants with tinnitus had big improvements in both awareness of tinnitus and tinnitus-related handicaps after using the headphones. This became evident after wearing the headphones for two hours per day for two weeks.

The study found a dose-response effect, meaning the longer someone wore the device, the more their tinnitus handicap was reduced.

“Our preliminary results showed a nice correlation between the length of time participants wore the device and reduction in tinnitus handicap.” Linnman stated.

Ongoing Research and Future Potential

Class Linnman's interview with Brian Taylor, Aud, Senior Director of Audiology in Signia. (From: YouTube/This Week in Hearing)
Class Linnman’s interview with Brian Taylor, Aud, Senior Director of Audiology in Signia. (From: YouTube/This Week in Hearing)

To better test how well AMT works, a larger study with a placebo control is currently underway with 50 participants who have moderate to severe tinnitus.

The study includes tablet-based hearing tests and long-term assessments. This aims to gather more detailed data on how tinnitus symptoms may change over time with the device.

Data from the study will be looked at to decide if a third study might be needed.

Linnman stresses the importance of careful testing, saying, “I’m a skeptic. Because you have to be. Many claims have been made about products that purportedly treat or even cure tinnitus and many patients have been disappointed over the years. So we want to be careful not to make any broad claims.”

With a patent pending and interest from industry, Linnman’s new therapy could soon become widely available.

This has the potential to be adapted for use in hearing aids or as a software application for wireless earbuds with microphones. And, doctors may test the technology in the field once it is decided where the technology should be used, either at home or in the clinic.

💬 Conversation: 1 comment

  1. I have had tinnitus for three years. Obviously very interested in this new treatment. Can I be advised when they will be available please?

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