One in 10 people suffers from tinnitus, yet there is very little support. Alison Healy reports
One man says the noise is like standing on an airport runway and hearing jets taking off constantly, 24 hours a day.
For someone else, the sound resembles rushing water. Others hear high-pitched whining, throbbing, fizzing or ringing sounds.
About one in 10 people has tinnitus - a noise in the head and ears which does not come from an external source. Experts believe tinnitus is usually caused by an overstimulation of, or damage to, the inner ear hair cells. They then send an irregular stream of signals to the part of the brain which perceives sound.
Some 2 per cent of sufferers are seriously affected by the condition and need help to deal with it.
For some people, the noise creeps up on them gradually. Others can say with certainty that their tinnitus started at a particular time on a certain day.
Tinnitus is a result of hearing damage and it can be caused by a number of factors, according to Dr Ewart Davies, pharmacologist and chairman of the British Tinnitus Association.
"Some have suffered hearing damage at birth. Others have been damaged by industrial sound. Certain drugs can cause it," he says.
The Irish Tinnitus Association (ITA) has one member who got tinnitus after a gun was discharged close to his ear.
In another case, a 19-year-old girl got the condition after attending a loud disco. There has also been an increase in tinnitus sufferers among call centre staff.
One man, who had suffered from chronic tinnitus for the past six years, recently found that his tinnitus disappeared for half an hour after he was knocked unconscious by a golf ball. But for many people, tinnitus is a lifelong condition.
The challenge is in learning how to deal with it, according to Jean Scott, chairwoman of the ITA.
She believes the key is to distract yourself from the sounds in your head, whether through activity, music, relaxation techniques or other methods.
The ITA, which has about 350 members, runs a number of support groups around the country and has
helplines in Dublin and Cork. The National Association for Deaf People provides secretarial support for the group.
"Members tend to come and go," says Scott. "They come to us when they are desperate and when they get help, they move on."
The group has found it hard to make links with tinnitus specialists here and often brings in experts from abroad for their twice-yearly conferences.
Dr Ewart Davies is coming to Dublin to address the Irish Tinnitus Association's spring meeting on Saturday. He will tell the audience that he believes a cure for tinnitus is on the way.
"It's down the road, but it's very difficult to say how far down the road.
"I have high hopes that there may be a cure in about 10 years," he told The Irish Times this week.
Researchers are working on improving a drug which has been found to stop tinnitus for about five to 15 minutes but it can only be given intravenously at the moment.
British tinnitus sufferers have access to a range of supports, including clinics. But the Irish Tinnitus Association has been asking the Department of Health to set up a tinnitus clinic in Dublin for four years now.
"I've been battling even to get to see the right people," says Scott.
A Department of Health spokeswoman said this was a matter for the Health Service Executive.
A spokesman for the HSE said it was willing to discuss the issue with the Irish Tinnitus Association.