Acoustic CR® Neuromodulation
Treatment with Acoustic CR® Neuromodulation is aimed at “unlearning” the tinnitus sound. Using a complex mathematical algorithm as a basis, CR® (coordinated reset) disrupts the pathologically hyperactive synchronicity of the nerve cells in the auditory cortex – through non-invasive, targeted acoustic signals.
The impulses used in Acoustic CR® Neuromodulation are transmitted via the auditory nerve as targeted, gentle acoustic stimuli.
Of course, Acoustic CR® Neuromodulation does not stimulate the entire brain in order to treat tinnitus; in fact, it makes use of the spatial arrangement of tone frequencies in the auditory cortex to achieve a targeted acoustic stimulation of the nerve cell assemblies concerned. Acoustic CR® impulses are tuned to the patient’s individual tinnitus frequency on the basis of the CR® algorithm and transmitted via the ear to the pathologically synchronous nerve cell associations in the auditory cortex.
Critical for the therapeutic effect: the spatial and chronological control of CR® signals
Spatial and chronological impulse control plays a critical role in the method of treatment – the same stimuli are not simply “selected at random” for every patient.
Spatial activation: the brain’s hearing centre (also known as the auditory cortex) is a highly organised structure: the nerve cell assemblies in a specific area of the auditory cortex are “tuned” to a certain frequency, similar to the way the keys are arranged on a piano. This makes it possible to transmit the acoustic CR® stimulation signals via a specific frequency to the exact target location – the hyperactive, synchronous nerve cell assembly responsible for the tinnitus tone. It is, of course, necessary to know exactly where the target location is – it is determined by your audiologist who measures the exact tinnitus frequency. The CR® stimulation signals are therefore not always the same for every patient and must be adapted precisely to each individual.
Note that stimulation does not occur at the tinnitus frequency but rather at exactly calculated frequencies above and below the tinnitus tone.
Chronological cycle
The active principle of Acoustic CR® Neuromodulation is based on the long-term disruption of pathologically synchronous hyperactivity in a highly networked nerve cell assembly that is responsible for the symptom. This is achieved by systematically “disrupting the rhythm” of the nerve cell assembly – and that, of course, cannot occur through simply transmitting arbitrary stimulation signals. In fact, not only do these signals need to be directed to the right spatial location – as described above – but also in a specific chronological sequence in order to be effective. The chronological sequence is calculated using a complex mathematical algorithm (CR® algorithm) that is aligned with neuronal activity.
