Hyperacusis

Hyperacusis is an auditory disorder characterized by a hypersensitivity to normal environmental sounds. Also it is defined as the loss of the dynamic range, understood as the ability of the ear to deal with sudden changes in the intensity of sounds.

The causes of hyperacisis are of diverse nature. The most common is acoustic trauma or noise injury, which is also the most difficult to treat. Other causes are head injuries, surgery, adverse drug side effects, chronic ears infection, temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ), etc. Some times, two or more causes can be present.

Collapsed tolerance to normal environmental sounds or noises which characterizes hiperacusis, usually produces a drastic change in the life quality of sufferers. In addition, many social and job related activities become difficult or impossible.

The isolation experienced by the patients becomes so traumatic, that many of the them go through a severe depression which must be treated in addition to hyperacusis’s treatment. Tinnitus (humming in the ears) is usually an added problem for most people who have hyperacusis.

Until now, there isn’t exist a cure for hyperacusis, since it has been impossible to determine the area in the inner ear where a damage has occurred. For that reason, hyperacusis is only considered as a symptom of that damage, but not as a disease itself.

Several treatments have been tried for hyperacusis, but the most successful at present is a retraining therapy called Tinnitus (and Hyperacusis) Retraining Therapy - TRT, developed by Dr. Pawel J. Jastreboff based on neurophysiological principles.

What is known about hiperacusis is still very little, and there are few specialists in the world who know it and have some experience with its treatment. In most of the cases there is a total acknowledgement on it.