BETHLEHEM TWP., Pa. | Lehigh Valley medical device company Neuromonics Inc. has received a $1 million federal grant to study the effectiveness of its tinnitus treatment on military service members.
Tinnitus is commonly referred to as "ringing of the ears" and can cause difficulty with concentrating, reading, sleeping and other activities.
It is a top medical complaint among U.S. service members who have been exposed to heavy noise during combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, Neuromonics said in a news release Monday.
The condition also affects some 50 million Americans, according to the American Tinnitus Association.
"A lot of people don't really know how many people are impacted by it and how severely it impacts some," Neuromonics CEO Rick Giancola said. "It affects one in six Americans."
The company has developed a treatment designed to help the patient's brain filter out tinnitus after several months through a listening device that plays specifically processed and relaxed music.
