Can Tinnitus be Treated? What an Audiologist Actually Does

If you've been told "there's nothing you can do" about tinnitus, you've gotten incomplete information. That's one of the most frustrating things we hear from new patients — they sat with the ringing for months, sometimes years, because a doctor brushed it off. The truth is that tinnitus is very manageable, and for most people, significant relief is possible.

You're Not Stuck With It

Tinnitus is the experience of sound — ringing, buzzing, hissing, chirping — that has no external source. It affects around 44 million Americans, and for many of them, it's not just a minor annoyance. It disrupts sleep, makes concentration harder, and quietly chips away at daily life.

What most people don't realize: tinnitus is almost always a symptom, not a condition on its own. It's a signal that something else is going on. Most commonly, that something is hearing loss. Research suggests roughly 80% of people with tinnitus also have some degree of hearing loss — often without knowing it.

That's where we start.

The Evaluation Comes First

Before we can talk about treatment, we need to understand what's happening with your hearing. At Greentree Hearing & Audiology, every tinnitus patient begins with a comprehensive hearing evaluation in a sound-controlled environment.

We test how well you hear across different frequencies and how well you understand speech in conversation. We also check your middle-ear function — whether your eardrum is intact, whether pressure is normal, and whether fluid might be involved. This gives us a full picture of what's driving your tinnitus, not just a guess.

No two tinnitus cases are exactly alike. The evaluation is how we figure out what's going on with yours specifically.

How Treating Hearing Loss Helps

When hearing loss is part of the picture — and it usually is — treating it often reduces how loud or intense the tinnitus feels. Here's why: when your brain isn't getting enough sound input through your ears, it sometimes starts generating its own. Hearing aids restore that input, which can quiet things down noticeably.

Many modern hearing aids also include sound therapy features built specifically for tinnitus. These aren't basic white noise machines. They deliver customized low-level sound designed to reduce the contrast between your tinnitus and your environment — and that contrast is a big part of what makes tinnitus feel so intrusive.

We work with hearing aids from Widex, Phonak, Starkey, Oticon, Signia, and ReSound — brands that have each invested in tinnitus-specific features. Widex has built fractal tones into their platform for years. Phonak Infinio includes a Tinnitus Balance feature with multiple sound therapy options. These tools work best when they're properly programmed for your specific hearing loss and tinnitus profile, which is something we handle in-office.

Sound Therapy as a Standalone Option

Not everyone with tinnitus has significant hearing loss. For those patients — or as a complement to hearing aids — sound therapy is a well-established approach on its own.

The goal isn't to drown out the tinnitus. It's to give your brain something else to focus on. Background sound from a white noise machine, a fan, or a hearing aid's therapy program reduces the silence that makes tinnitus stand out. Over time, many patients find it becomes far less bothersome, even when it's technically still present. Your brain stops treating it as urgent, and that shift makes an enormous difference.

What an Audiologist Brings to the Table

An audiologist brings diagnostic training, clinical equipment, and a structured approach to a problem most medical offices simply don't have time to address thoroughly. There's a real difference between being told to "learn to live with it" and working with someone who actually specializes in this.

At your appointment, we're not just fitting you with a device and sending you home. We're identifying contributing factors, ruling out middle-ear problems, asking about your lifestyle and which situations feel most difficult, and building a management plan from there. Tinnitus doesn't always go away completely — but it can get significantly better with the right approach, and that approach starts with the right evaluation.

Find Out What's Possible

At Greentree Hearing & Audiology, we've been helping patients in the Kirkwood and St. Louis area manage tinnitus for over 20 years. John Scarlas, M.S., CCC-A has worked with patients across the full spectrum — from those with mild, occasional ringing to those whose tinnitus significantly affects their quality of life.

If tinnitus is getting in the way of your sleep, your focus, or just your peace of mind, give us a call. A proper evaluation is the first step — and it's far more likely to lead somewhere helpful than waiting it out alone.

We invite you to give us a call at 314-835-9996 to schedule your consultation.