Tinnitus and rTMS – When the brain incorrectly regulates volume
Tinnitus can severely impact one's life – a persistent whistling, ringing, or buzzing that doesn't go away and has no external source. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) offers a modern, gentle approach to specifically target the disrupted brain processes and noticeably reduce the burden.
What happens in the brain
Tinnitus is not caused by imagination, but by altered activity patterns in the brain. It usually begins with damage to the inner ear – due to noise, aging, or other stressors. When less acoustic information reaches the ear, the auditory cortex reacts with a kind of overreaction: it increases its own activity, nerve cells fire spontaneously and synchronize in unusual ways. The result is the perception of sounds that do not objectively exist.
However, the auditory system doesn't operate in isolation. Brain regions responsible for attention, stress processing, and emotional evaluation play a crucial role in how burdensome tinnitus is perceived to be. Those who are tense, intensely focused on the noise, or suffering from sleep disturbances and depressive moods usually experience tinnitus as significantly more distressing. Therefore, tinnitus is less a purely auditory problem and more an imbalance in multiple neural networks – and this is precisely where rTMS comes into play.
How the treatment works
In rTMS, a magnetic coil is precisely positioned on the head and emits short magnetic pulses that selectively stimulate specific brain regions. The procedure is non-invasive, requires no anesthesia, and is generally well-tolerated. Patients sit comfortably in the treatment chair during the procedure and can resume their normal activities immediately afterward.
At our Las Almas institutes, stimulation is primarily targeted at overactive areas of the auditory cortex to reduce heightened neural activity. A typical course of therapy comprises ten to twenty sessions over two to four weeks. Many treatment centers combine rTMS with complementary measures such as counseling, relaxation techniques, or behavioral therapy elements to enhance and enhance the effects.
What the method can achieve – and where its limits lie
Clinical studies and practical experience show that a significant proportion of patients undergoing treatment experience improvement. Many report that the perceived loudness of the tinnitus decreases, or that the noise is less prominent and no longer interferes with daily life as much. This is often measurable using validated questionnaires on quality of life and tinnitus burden. Improvements are often reflected in better sleep, increased concentration, and greater composure in dealing with the noise.
At the same time, tinnitus is a complex disorder, and the response to treatment varies from person to person. Not every patient benefits to the same extent, and in some cases, the effect is temporary. rTMS is therefore not a panacea, but a valuable component of a comprehensive treatment plan. In this sense, it is advisable to use rTMS treatment as a complement to other therapies, whether psychological, therapeutic, or physiological. The goal is not only to reduce the volume of tinnitus, but above all to regain quality of life and the ability to better control the noise and push it into the background.
