<s>
Tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
are	O
a	O
range	O
of	O
devices	O
based	O
on	O
simple	O
white	O
noise	O
machines	O
used	O
to	O
add	O
natural	O
or	O
artificial	O
sound	O
into	O
a	O
tinnitus	O
sufferer	O
's	O
environment	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
mask	O
or	O
cover	O
up	O
the	O
ringing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tinnitus	B-Application
masking	I-Application
cannot	O
reduce	O
or	O
eliminate	O
tinnitus	O
,	O
only	O
reduce	O
awareness	O
of	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
efficacy	O
of	O
a	O
tinnitus	B-Application
masker	I-Application
may	O
depend	O
on	O
the	O
wearer	O
's	O
capacity	O
to	O
experience	O
residual	O
inhibition	O
,	O
the	O
temporary	O
suppression	O
of	O
tinnitus	O
in	O
response	O
to	O
particular	O
sound	O
patterns	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tinnitus	O
suppression	O
is	O
different	O
than	O
but	O
related	O
to	O
tinnitus	B-Application
masking	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
distinguish	O
the	O
tailored	O
sound	O
used	O
for	O
inhibition	O
from	O
the	O
broadband	O
undifferentiated	O
sound	O
employed	O
in	O
tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
,	O
it	O
is	O
usually	O
referred	O
to	O
as	O
the	O
'	O
trigger	O
 '	O
or	O
'	O
quieting	O
 '	O
sound	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Not	O
everyone	O
can	O
experience	O
RI	O
;	O
for	O
those	O
who	O
do	O
not	O
,	O
tinnitus	B-Application
masking	I-Application
is	O
likely	O
to	O
be	O
ineffective	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
qualities	O
of	O
a	O
tinnitus	B-Application
masker	I-Application
need	O
to	O
be	O
taken	O
into	O
account	O
:	O
how	O
effective	O
the	O
masking	O
is	O
,	O
and	O
how	O
intrusive	O
or	O
distracting	O
the	O
generated	O
sound	O
itself	O
is	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
may	O
use	O
music	O
or	O
natural	O
sounds	O
,	O
wide	O
band	O
white	O
or	O
pink	O
noise	O
,	O
narrow	O
band	O
white	O
noise	O
,	O
a	O
notched	O
soundfield	O
,	O
frequency	O
or	O
amplitude	O
modulated	O
sound	O
,	O
intermittent	O
pulsed	O
sound	O
,	O
or	O
other	O
patterned	O
sound	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
also	O
safety	O
issues	O
associated	O
with	O
use	O
of	O
tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
:	O
the	O
"	O
safe	O
"	O
level	O
of	O
continuous	O
sound	O
depends	O
on	O
the	O
duration	O
of	O
the	O
sound	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
are	O
commonly	O
used	O
by	O
tinnitus	O
sufferers	O
when	O
trying	O
to	O
sleep	O
or	O
relax	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
is	O
within	O
these	O
quiet	O
environments	O
that	O
the	O
tinnitus	O
is	O
at	O
its	O
most	O
noticeable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
used	O
in	O
conjunction	O
with	O
a	O
sound	B-Device
pillow	I-Device
(	O
which	O
contains	O
small	O
embedded	O
speakers	O
)	O
they	O
can	O
mask	O
a	O
person	O
's	O
tinnitus	O
sounds	O
without	O
disturbing	O
his/her	O
partner	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
More	O
advanced	O
software	O
based	O
tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
can	O
use	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
natural	O
and	O
synthetic	O
sounds	O
or	O
a	O
filtered	O
noise	O
generator	O
tailored	O
to	O
mask	O
the	O
specific	O
frequencies	O
at	O
which	O
the	O
tinnitus	O
signal	O
is	O
experienced	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
standard	O
hearing	O
aid	O
may	O
be	O
used	O
for	O
tinnitus	B-Application
masking	I-Application
;	O
the	O
tuning	O
and	O
amplification	O
characteristics	O
are	O
different	O
than	O
when	O
one	O
is	O
used	O
in	O
compensation	O
for	O
hearing	O
loss	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
study	O
by	O
Jalilvand	O
in	O
2015	O
,	O
showed	O
that	O
hearing	O
aids	O
instead	O
of	O
tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
used	O
to	O
amplify	O
sounds	O
helped	O
with	O
the	O
perception	O
of	O
tinnitus	O
for	O
veterans	O
with	O
blast-induced	O
tinnitus	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
2012	O
Cochrane	O
Review	O
stated	O
the	O
available	O
studies	O
do	O
not	O
show	O
strong	O
evidence	O
of	O
the	O
efficacy	O
of	O
sound	O
therapy	O
including	O
tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
in	O
tinnitus	O
management	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Audiologic	O
Tinnitus	O
Management	O
(	O
ATM	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
clinical	O
protocol	O
for	O
management	O
of	O
tinnitus	O
involving	O
counselling	O
and	O
sound	O
therapy	O
including	O
tinnitus	B-Application
maskers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
