Introducing chat AI 'Tinnibot' that reduces the pain of tinnitus
A study has announced that
Frontiers | Delivery of internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy combined with human-delivered telepsychology in tinnitus sufferers through a chatbot-based mobile app
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fauot.2023.1302215/full
Train your brain to overcome tinnitus
https://www.scienceinpublic.com.au/media-releases/mindear-230109
New app can reduce debilitating impact of tinnitus, say researchers | Medical research | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2024/jan/09/new-app-can-reduce-debilitating-impact-of-tinnitus-say-researchers
It is estimated that 10-15% of the population suffers from tinnitus, which is the hearing of sounds even when there is no external sound, and it is said that as many as 20 million people in the United States alone suffer from severe tinnitus. Masu. Although there is no fundamental treatment for tinnitus, there is a view that the pain of tinnitus is exacerbated by negative thoughts caused by tinnitus rather than the sound itself, so cognitive behavioral therapy is used to change the way tinnitus is felt. There are also reports that (CBT) can alleviate pain.
Fabrice Vardy, an audiologist at the University of Auckland's Waipapa Taumata Rau School and one of the founders of MindEar, a company specializing in tinnitus care, said: 'One of the most common misconceptions about tinnitus is that tinnitus is The idea that there is nothing you can do about it and that you have to live with your tinnitus is simply not true. With the help of a professional tinnitus support specialist, the sounds that patients experience can be improved. 'It can reduce fear and anxiety.'
CBT can be effective in alleviating the pain of tinnitus, but therapy with trained psychologists is expensive and not easily available. Therefore, MindEar, led by Mr. Birdy and others, developed ``Tinnibot'', a chat application that lectures on how to deal with tinnitus.
To test the effectiveness of online cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) over the Internet, Birdy and his colleagues divided 28 adults over the age of 18 who suffered from tinnitus into two groups, one of which received Tinnibot. We conducted an experiment in which one participant received an iCBT program, while the other received a hybrid iCBT program conducted by Tinnibot and a clinical psychologist.
The experiment lasted eight weeks, and 14 participants received virtual coaching on the Tinnibot app for 10 minutes a day. In addition to this, the other 14 participants also received a 30-minute video call with a clinical psychologist.
The results showed that after eight weeks, six participants in the Tinnibot-only group and nine participants in the hybrid group experienced a significant reduction in tinnitus distress. Additionally, both groups had similar scores on a scale measuring tinnitus distress. Furthermore, in a follow-up study conducted 16 weeks later, 9 out of 14 people who participated in the follow-up study showed a reduction in tinnitus distress.
From this, the research team found that iCBT could reduce the pain of approximately two-thirds of tinnitus patients, a finding that is particularly important in an environment where face-to-face treatment has become difficult due to the pandemic. I concluded.
Regarding the mechanism by which psychological therapy is effective in alleviating the pain of tinnitus, the research team explains, ``The sound of tinnitus is perceived as an unpleasant or disturbing sound, so the brain concentrates on that sound, causing further attention to the sound.'' 'You train your mind to listen to the sound. If you train your mind to listen to the sound in a negative way and actively stop listening to the sound, it will be easier to stop tinnitus.' doing.
MindEar's app has been released for iOS and Android in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, etc., and at the time of writing, there is no Japanese version, but the research team plans to release it in more regions soon. It is planned.
Tinnibot | Tinnitus Relief - Apps on Google Play
'Tinnibot | Tinnitus Relief' on the App Store
Related Posts:
in Science, Posted by log1l_ks