When tinnitus becomes chronic, a return to silence is impossible. Hence the importance of quickly consulting a specialist.
Symptoms that should not be left lying around. This is the message that specialists want to convey about tinnitus, on this national hearing day. According to an IPSOS-Crédit Agricole survey conducted in February, these parasitic auditory perceptions, buzzing or whistling, affect 1 in 4 French people during their lifetime, or nearly 16 million people. However, 51% of people who have already experienced tinnitus have not consulted a doctor.
However “when tinnitus lasts more than 48 hours, it is absolutely necessary to consult, insists Dr. Martine Orhesser, ENT in Paris. “ If the wheezing persists until Monday after a Saturday evening, it is because there was a real sound trauma, which must be quickly taken care of by corticosteroids or vasodilators before the tinnitus becomes chronic . “
Elisten to Dr Martine Orhesser, ENT specialist in tinnitus, in Paris: “These hearing traumas are irreversible, especially if they are repeated. “
The first cause of tinnitus is hearing trauma in the workplace or during leisure time, whether it is hunting or listening to amplified music. “Standards have improved a lot in the workplace, but protecting your ears when you go to a nightclub has not yet become enough in the customs of our young people, regrets Dr. Martine Orhesser. And the legislation is not strict enough to impose anything on the owners of nightclubs or concert halls. “
Harmful consequences for concentration
Nearly 4 million French people suffer from permanent tinnitus, resulting from even slight hearing loss, which can be particularly disabling on a daily basis. Tinnitus is considered annoying by 88% of French people and has harmful consequences for concentration (81%) and comprehension (78%). “Not all people are embarrassed. You have to understand that tinnitus is not just an ear problem, what matters is what the brain does with it, ”explains Dr Martine Orhesse. Indeed, in some people, the brain sorts this parasitic sound on its own, while in others, on the contrary, it hangs on the tinnitus which then becomes obsessive.
Listen to Dr Martine Orhesser, ENT specialist in tinnitus, in Paris: “Tinnitus can go silent for years until a period of stress or an emotional event causes the brain to sort it out. “
Teach the brain to ignore the buzzing
The stake in the management of this chronic tinnitus is therefore to relearn the brain to ignore the hissing or buzzing. But it is not enough to send the patient home by telling him that his brain will get used to the tinnitus, it takes real care. “This is called habituation. This involves relaxation therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy or even hypnosis, ”explains Martine Orhesser. There are therefore in France more than thirty multidisciplinary teams seeking to relieve these patients of their chronic tinnitus, united within the French association of multidisciplinary teams in tinnitus (Afrepa). “ENT cannot deal with tinnitus everything, psychologists and sophrologists are essential help. As are hearing aid professionals, because by fitting hearing deficits, even slight ones, we can create a mask effect on tinnitus, ”explains the specialist.
Elisten to Dr Martine Orhesser : “Unfortunately, we cannot provide the patient with the cure he wants. To silence it is often very difficult, but we manage to stop the brain from worrying about the tinnitus. “
.
