tinnitus retraining therapy tinnitus retraining therapy tinnitus retraining therapy (trt) is a form of habituation therapy designed to help people who experience tinnitus—a ringing, buzzing, hissing, or other sound heard when no external sound source is present. two key components of trt directly follow from the neurophysiological model of tinnitus: directive counseling aims to help the sufferer reclassify tinnitus to a category of neutral signals, and sound therapy weakens tinnitus-related neuronal activity. tinnitus retraining therapyother namestrtspecialtyaudiologist the goal of trt is to allow a person to manage their reaction to their tinnitus: habituating themselves to it, and restoring unaffected perception. neither tinnitus retraining therapy or any other therapy reduces or eliminates tinnitus. an alternative to trt is tinnitus masking: the use of noise, music, or other environmental sounds to obscure or mask the tinnitus. hearing aids can partially mask the condition. a review of tinnitus retraining therapy trials indicates that it may be more effective than tinnitus masking. applicability not everyone who experiences tinnitus is significantly bothered by it. however, some experience annoyance, anxiety, panic, loss of sleep, or difficulty concentrating. the distress of tinnitus is strongly associated with various psychological factors; the loudness, duration, and other characteristics of the tinnitus symptoms are secondary. trt may offer real though moderate improvement in tinnitus suffering for adults with moderate-to-severe tinnitus, in the absence of hyperacusis, significant hearing loss, or depression. not everyone is a good candidate for trt. those most likely to have a favorable outcome from trt are those with lower loudness of tinnitus, higher pitch of tinnitus, shorter duration of tinnitus since onset, recognition of tinnitus attenuation by sound generator, lower hearing thresholds (i.e. better hearing), high tinnitus handicap inventory (thi) score, and positive attitude toward therapy. other secondary hearing symptoms although no studies have concluded in its optimal treatment, trt has been used to treat hyperacusis, misophonia, and phonophobia. cause physiological basis tinnitus may be the result of abnormal neural activity caused by discordant damage (dysfunction) of outer and inner hair cells of the cochlea. psychological model