Understanding Tinnitus and the New Lenire Treatment Option

Tinnitus is defined by the World Health Organization as “the perception of sound in the ears or head when no corresponding external sound is present.” According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communicative Disorders (NIDCD) it affects approximately 25 million Americans with roughly 5 million of them characterizing it as chronic and burdensome. Unfortunately, around 2 million people find it debilitating. Tinnitus is often described as a ringing, buzzing, hissing, or humming sound, although every patient may experience their own version and describe it differently. This phenomenon remains a symptom with many causes and although a medical cure to literally eliminate tinnitus remains elusive, effective treatments, therapies, and management approaches have all been available for many years.  

Recently, a groundbreaking development in tinnitus treatment and management was achieved with the release of Lenire, an FDA approved device designed to treat tinnitus and lessen its severity and intrusiveness. To achieve this, Lenire uses a process called bimodal neuromodulation, which simply means it pairs sound stimulation via a set of headphones with gentle, electrical tongue pulses via a tongue tip applicator. This allows Lenire to stimulate two neural pathways, auditory and somatosensory, integral for the therapy to be effective, rather than only the auditory pathway like traditional tinnitus treatments and therapies.  

Research on Lenire suggests that this combined stimulation approach drives stronger adaptive neuroplasticity, otherwise described as the brain and nervous system’s ability to change and adapt, leading to a much more effective and efficient reduction in the brain’s attention and sensitivity to the perception of tinnitus. Ultimately, the clinical approach with Lenire is to achieve habituation and ease the tinnitus symptoms to a point where they are far more manageable and subtle in intrusiveness and/or perception. An analogy would be to think of this therapy like managing any other chronic condition.   

Lenire is very effective. When reviewing published research findings, significant improvements can be achieved in as little as 6 weeks. It must be stated that outcomes do vary widely and may take longer to achieve, such as within 12 weeks or more depending on a variety of factors. Based on one published review of a real-world analysis of Lenire, 78% of patients reported clinically significant relief after 6 weeks and 89.2% of patients benefited from treatment with Lenire out of 220 patients with moderate or worse tinnitus based on their own ratings.   

It’s important to consult with a knowledgeable healthcare provider when experiencing bothersome tinnitus. Speak with an audiologist at Hearing Partners of South Florida for further information and to schedule an appointment. Relief is available and achievable.