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Tinnitus describes the perception of any sound in the ear in the absence of an external stimulus and presents a malfunction in the processing of auditory signals; a hearing impairment, often noise-induced or related to aging, is commonly associated with tinnitus. Clinically, tinnitus is subdivided into subjective and objective; the latter describes the minority of cases in which an external stimulus is potentially heard by an observer, for example by placing a stethoscope over the patient’s external ear. Common causes of objective tinnitus include middle ear and skull base tumors, vascular abnormalities and metabolic derangements. In the majority of cases, tinnitus is subjective and frequently self-limited. In a small subset of patients with subjective tinnitus, its persistence leads to disruption of daily life. While many patients habituate to tinnitus, others may seek medical care if the tinnitus becomes too disruptive.

Treatment is supportive in nature; there is no cure. Treatment has focused on counseling or use of tinnitus maskers that produce a broad band of continuous external noise that diverts attention or masks the tinnitus. Cognitive behavioral therapy may also be provided to improve coping skills, typically requiring 4 to 6 one-hour visits over an 18-month period.  Tinnitus retraining, also referred to as tinnitus habituation therapy, is another treatment option, based on the theories of a researcher named Jastreboff. Jastreboff proposes that tinnitus itself is related to the normal background electrical activity in auditory nerve cells, but the key factor is the subject’s unpleasant perception of the noise, which is governed by an abnormal conditioned response in the extra-auditory limbic system. The goal of tinnitus retraining therapy is to retrain the subcortical and cortical centers involved in processing the tinnitus signals and habituate the subcortical and cortical response to the auditory neural activity.  In contrast to tinnitus masking, the auditory stimulus is not intended to drown out or mask the tinnitus, but set at a level such that the tinnitus can still be detected.  This strategy is thought to enhance habituation to the tinnitus by increasing the neuronal activity within the auditory system.  Treatment may also include the use of hearing aids to increase external auditory stimulation. 

Sound therapy is a treatment approach that is based on evidence of auditory cortex reorganization (cortical re-mapping) with tinnitus, hearing loss, and sound/frequency training. One type of sound therapy uses an ear-worn device (Neuromonics Tinnitus Treatment, Neuromonics, Australia) pre-recorded with selected relaxation audio and other sounds spectrally adapted to the individual patient’s hearing thresholds. This is achieved by boosting the amplitude of those frequencies where an audiogram has shown the patient to have a reduced hearing threshold. Also being evaluated is auditory tone discrimination training at or around the tinnitus frequency. Another type of sound therapy that is being investigated utilizes music with the frequency of the tinnitus removed (notched music) to promote reorganization of sound processing in the auditory cortex.

Transcutaneous electrical stimulation to the external ear has also been investigated and is based on the observation that the electrical stimulation of the cochlea associated with a cochlear implant may be associated with a reduction in tinnitus. Transmeatal low-power laser irradiation, electromagnetic energy, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and botulinum toxin A injections have also been evaluated.

Note: This policy does not address pharmacologic treatment of tinnitus, e.g., the use of amitriptyline or other tricyclic antidepressants.

Investigative service is defined as the use of any treatment procedure, facility, equipment, drug, device, or supply not yet recognized by certifying boards and/or approving or licensing agencies or published peer review criteria as standard, effective medical practice for the treatment of the condition being treated and as such therefore is not considered medically necessary.

The coverage guidelines outlined in the Medical Policy Manual should not be used in lieu of the Member's specific benefit plan language.

2/13/2002: Investigational definition added

5/8/2002: Type of Service and Place of Service deleted

11/3/2004: Code Reference section completed

9/6/2006: Policy reviewed, policy section clarified

9/13/2006: Policy updated. Updates approved per Medical Policy Advisory Committee (MPAC), ICD9 diagnosis code 388.3 deleted from policy

4/27/2009: Policy reviewed, no changes

05/28/2010: Policy description updated regarding treatment approaches. For clarity purposes, the policy statement was updated to add tinnitus coping therapy, transcutaneous electrical stimulation, and sound therapy as investigational treatment approaches. Intent of policy statement unchanged. FEP verbiage added to the Policy Exceptions section.

07/29/2011: Policy reviewed; no changes.

07/17/2012: Policy reviewed; no changes.

All codes billed for this procedure are considered investigational and not eligible for coverage. 

Non-Covered Codes

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