News

Researchers at Nottingham BRC’s Hearing theme will be marking Tinnitus Week this week (6-13 February) with a mission to develop new interventions to tackle this distressing condition. 

Innovation is a key feature of the latest Nottingham BRC grant award, which is one of only three specialist BRC Themes in the UK to be dedicated to tackling serious hearing disorders such as tinnitus.

The next five years will see investigators in Nottingham launching research into precision tools to personalise treatments for patients, as well as utilising deep phenotyping of hearing disorders that affect around one in five of the UK population.

Dr Derek Hoare, Nottingham BRC Hearing Theme Lead, said:

“Tinnitus week is an important opportunity every year to raise the profile of tinnitus, speak openly and widely about the symptoms of tinnitus and how it affects people, and what we can do to help.

“We have a long track record and depth of expertise in Nottingham in researching tinnitus, and this year Tinnitus Week focuses on prevention and supporting those working and living in noisy environments that put them at risk of hearing loss and tinnitus.”

Long term noise exposure study

Meanwhile, a new study to investigate the long-term effects of exposure to loud noises on hearing was launched just before Tinnitus Week, and volunteers are needed to take part. 

Tinnitus - when someone hears a noise in their head or ear that has no external source, often buzzing, ringing, whistling, or hissing - is believed to affect between 15 and 20 percent of the population.

Researchers at the University of Nottingham’s Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre, are working with the Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre on a new study using MRI imaging to investigate the longer-term effects of noise exposure and are appealing for volunteers to take part.

Dr Rebecca Dewey, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham, is leading the study. She said: “Noise-induced hearing loss leads to a reduction in quality of life, and is likely to be predictive of more severe hearing loss in old age. Hence, excessive noise exposure is a major public health issue demanding comprehensive investigation.”

Dr Hoare commented: “The study led by Dr Dewey is very exciting; it uses cutting-edge brain imaging and will give us new insights into what physical consequences different levels of noise expose have for the hearing system and risk of tinnitus.”

As tinnitus can be caused by exposure to loud noises, hearing experts are warning audiophiles this Tinnitus Week to be careful not to turn the volume up too loud. Noise exposure from personal stereos, live music events and other sources can damage the hearing – leading to problems which are not always easy to identify using regular clinical tests.

Excessive noise exposure is the main cause of preventable hearing impairment worldwide, accounting for more than one-third of all cases of hearing loss in industrialised nations. Some people report that they have difficulty hearing even when an audiologist is not able to detect a hearing loss.

Damage from noise exposure is thought to be linked to tinnitus because the areas of the brain that process sounds may work differently after exposure to loud noises.

The researchers are now enlisting the help of people who have been exposed to loud noises in order to study the longer-term effects of noise exposure and are aiming to recruit up to 200 healthy adult volunteers aged 30 to 50 years old.

The study will take place at the Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre on University Park campus and will comprise of two visits each lasting up to two hours.