Personalizing sound therapy with Tinnitus Balance

Did you know that 10–15% of adults experience tinnitus?¹ And that 80% of adults with tinnitus also have hearing loss?²

That means many of the patients that you see every day could benefit from tinnitus treatment. However, our patients may not be aware of the link between tinnitus and hearing loss and therefore may not know to ask for help.

Customizing treatment in Phonak Target and the myPhonak

Phonak’s Target fitting software and the myPhonak app include built-in tools that support sound enrichment as part of a recognized tinnitus management program.

In Target, the noise generator can be activated in two ways: it can be embedded within AutoSense OS for those who prefer a “set it and forget it” approach, ensuring sound therapy is always on, or it can be included as a separate manual program that patients can activate as needed.

Once activated, the sound can be fine-tuned using a graphic equalizer, and the volume is fully customizable. Clinicians can tailor the spectral characteristics of the sound based on individual needs. By default, the sound is shaped according to the patient’s audiogram, but white or pink noise can also be selected manually.

For clinicians who incorporate pitch or loudness matching into their tinnitus assessment, these values can be entered directly in Target under the Client > Audiogram tab, in the Most troublesome tinnitus field below the audiogram graph. When the “Set to hearing loss” option is selected, these values are factored into the generated sound.

Patients can also be given control over their tinnitus therapy volume through the myPhonak app. To enable this, navigate to Device Options in Target and turn on Tinnitus Balance control. Once activated, patients will see a Volume / Tinnitus toggle above the main volume slider in the app, allowing them to adjust the sound therapy level based on their comfort and preferences.

Understanding sound therapy options in Tinnitus Balance

The Tinnitus Balance feature offers several sound options:

•  White noise – Provides equal energy across all audible frequencies.

•  Pink noise – Emphasizes lower frequencies with a natural drop-off in higher ones.

•  Noise set to hearing loss – A customized sound shaped to the individual’s audiogram, with optional input from pitch and loudness matching.

Together, these features allow for a highly tailored tinnitus management experience, giving both professionals and patients tools to help relieve symptoms.

One patient’s experience

When I was in clinic, I worked with a physician who sought hearing aids specifically because of bothersome tinnitus and his awareness of the connection between hearing loss and brain health. His audiogram diagnosed mild high-frequency hearing loss but he reported no subjective difficulty hearing at his initial evaluation.

At his first follow-up, just two weeks after receiving his hearing aids, he reported a noticeable decrease in tinnitus perception. By one month, he said his tinnitus was hardly ever noticeable. It took just 30 days to make a drastic improvement in his well-being. He became one of my strongest advocates for hearing aid use, and a lifelong patient.

Simple tools, significant impact

Tinnitus Balance is a practical, built-in way to offer relief to your patients. Whether the tinnitus is mild or more intrusive, using hearing aids in combination with personalized sound therapy may help ease the stress that often comes with symptoms.

To learn more about myPhonak, please visit Phonak.com.

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References:

1. Langguth, B., Kreuzer, P. M., Klein Jung, T., & De Ridder, D. (2013). Tinnitus: causes and clinical management. The Lancet. Neurology, 12(9), 920–930. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1474-4422(13)70160-1
2. Henry, J. A., Dennis, K. C., & Schechter, M. A. (2005). General review of tinnitus: prevalence, mechanisms, effects, and management. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research: JSLHR, 48(5), 1204–1235. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2005/084)