Nola Aronson of Advanced Audiology made an announcement recently that she has acquired a specialized machine which will assist her in more precisely helping patients deal with ringing in the ears, known as tinnitus.
The Tinnometer machine presents tones in different frequency ranges to measure the frequency and loudness of the tinnitus, according to the Santa Clarita audiologist.
RELATED: Advanced Audiology Offering Buy-One-Get-One-Free Holiday Sale On Hearing Aids For KHTS Listeners
“It makes it more precise, so then when you go to fit a hearing aid, then you know what frequency you’re trying to match or distract the person from,” she explained.
A new feature in today’s hearing aids allows audiologists to program a variety of types of white noise or zen music to help nullify or habituate patients to their tinnitus.
Aronson estimates about 80 percent of her patients are more disturbed by their tinnitus than their hearing loss, and she noted she hopes the new machine will help, though it isn’t guaranteed.
“There is no cure for tinnitus,” Aronson said. “We used to say, ‘Oh … there’s nothing we can do about it,’ and now we will experiment with this machine and try to help you even more.”
She concluded with a laugh, “What I say is, ring out the new year and ring in the good stuff… As I said, no promises, but there is hope that we can do this.”
