Systems Science-Based Aspects of Tinnitus Therapy

Background: Persistent and disturbing tinnitus is a major therapeutic challenge as its incidence is increasing and conventional approaches using mechanistic biomedical models are mainly ineffective in the long term and may induce development of a chronic condition. Objective: Presentation of a systems science-based approach of integrative tinnitus therapy which allows for the complexity of maintaining one-sided auditive focussing of attention. Methods: Discussion of conventional approaches to tinnitus therapy from various perspectives of health science with presentation of the symptom model from a systems theory's view point that regards tinnitus as a functional pattern that can be utilised as a competence of the organism in the sense of resource-orientated therapy. Results and conclusion: The advantages of this concept lies in the positive re-evaluation (reframing) of the increased tinnitus sensivity by the affected person as a health-promoting feedback signal of the organism related to stressful situations. The change in significance leads to a demonstrable decrease in tinnitus-related stress and tinnitus-related burdens verified by a standardised tinnitus questionnaire (TQ, German version after Goebel and Hiller). Systemic approaches of modern Ericksonian hypnosis are regarded as a reasonable procedure to help the affected person, using the concept of salutogenesis to exploit problem-inherent competences and to mobilise the individual's own health resources via guided focusing of the patient's attention. With the meta-concept of modern system theories, not only modern hypnosis but also other approaches of regulative medicine to mobilise health-giving potentials can be integrated into a resource-oriented therapeutic concept.