Tinnitus Clinic at Mass Eye and Ear

It seems like it's been quite a while since @gillme and I was at ARO this year. If you recall, Tinnitus Hub had a booth there, and one day, Stephane Maison, an audiologist and well-known tinnitus researcher from Harvard, Mass Eye and Ear Hospital, stopped by to let us know that he would be opening a tinnitus clinic.

The clinic would be separate from the Lauer Tinnitus Research Lab and a place where tinnitus patients would be seen and tested under an extended examination protocol and referred, in a coordinated manner, to other disciplines like ENT and dentistry as needed.

Dr. Maison spent quite a bit of time explaining this to us, and what makes the clinic different from others is that results from the extended examination protocol would be viewed and used as clinical research. So, while receiving help for yourself from a very well-informed and concerned medical team, you would also be contributing to a better understanding of tinnitus as a benefit to others. Research at Harvard has centered around 'hidden hearing loss' and the loss of fibers in the auditory nerve while hair cells remain intact.

Anyway, I want to let you know that the clinic is now open. On their website, you can find more information about the clinic and the medical team.

You can read Stephane Maison's biography.

TuxedoCat

 

I wonder how far into the future we'll need to be where this sort of treatment can be telehealth.

While their program demands a referral from an ENT, typically, they'll check you out anyway in person. I assume for most not in the immediate local area or within 2 hours of driving, it's quite a hike and expense to take part. Unfortunately, given the research part, you're likely to need to be there frequently.

It would be nice if there were grants for patients (like there are for researchers and universities) who would need to be temporarily housed or fed while receiving consults or treatment.

 

Dr. Maison is the one who gave @gameover the setback per his post here:

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/posts/711178