Chronic idiopathic subjective tinnitus is a common condition affecting around one in ten of the population at any given time. For the majority of people it is an annoyance rather than a major health issue but for approximately 0.5 per cent of the population tinnitus interferes with their ability to pursue a normal life. Modern theories of the pathogenesis of the condition concentrate on the central auditory system although the peripheral auditory system can be a trigger or ignition site for tinnitus. Although a cure remains elusive there are several good treatment strategies based on psychological and neurophysiological models of tinnitus that promote habituation to the symptom.