World Hearing Center, Institute of Physiology and Pathology of Hearing, Mokra 17 Street, 05-830, Warsaw/Kajetany, Poland.
Heart Failure and Cardiac Rehabilitation Department, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Warsaw, Warszawa, Poland.
Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Mar;279(3):1257-1267. doi: 10.1007/s00405-021-06767-9. Epub 2021 Mar 30.
The World Health Organization reports that the number of tinnitus sufferers is increasing year on year. Given the common use of mobile devices and the availability of applications designed to support patients in tinnitus therapy and reduce tinnitus severity, patients seeking help are likely to try this form of support. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a mobile application in tinnitus sound therapy, in this case ReSound Tinnitus Relief™.
The study involved 52 patients hospitalized for tinnitus. All participants used the free ReSound Tinnitus Relief application for 6 months. The application is based on sound therapy. Patients were advised to use the application for at least 30 min per day, the sounds should not completely mask the tinnitus, and they should be listened to via a loudspeaker. The effects of the therapy were evaluated by means of standardized questionnaires for tinnitus severity: the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and the Tinnitus Functional Index.
The study showed a reduction in tinnitus severity as measured by both questionnaires. The general severity decreased after the first 3 months and again in the following 3 months of using the application. In both questionnaires the biggest changes were observed in the subscales of emotions.
Results obtained here from standardized questionnaires indicate that the tested application may contribute to tinnitus reduction. However, it is advisable to conduct further research on the applicability of such technology in medical practice.
世界卫生组织报告称，耳鸣患者的数量逐年增加。鉴于移动设备的普遍使用以及支持耳鸣治疗和减轻耳鸣严重程度的应用程序的可用性，寻求帮助的患者可能会尝试这种形式的支持。本研究旨在评估一种耳鸣声音疗法的移动应用程序的有效性，在本例中为 ReSound Tinnitus Relief™。
该研究涉及 52 名因耳鸣住院的患者。所有参与者都使用了免费的 ReSound Tinnitus Relief 应用程序 6 个月。该应用程序基于声音疗法。建议患者每天至少使用 30 分钟，声音不应完全掩盖耳鸣，并且应通过扬声器收听。通过耳鸣严重程度的标准化问卷评估治疗效果：耳鸣残疾量表和耳鸣功能指数。
研究表明，两种问卷均显示耳鸣严重程度降低。在使用该应用程序的前 3 个月和接下来的 3 个月内，总体严重程度下降。在两个问卷中，情绪子量表的变化最大。
标准化问卷得出的结果表明，经过测试的应用程序可能有助于减轻耳鸣。然而，建议在医学实践中进一步研究这种技术的适用性。
