MSGID: 1:317/3 647eb68a   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Study shows promising treatment for tinnitus    
    An innovative treatment device tackles the hissing sound of silence    
      
     Date:   
         June 5, 2023   
     Source:   
         Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan   
     Summary:   
         A double-blind randomized clinical trial of a device aimed at   
         silencing the phantom sounds of tinnitus has yielded promising   
         results.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Tinnitus, the ringing, buzzing or hissing sound of silence, varies   
   from slightly annoying in some to utterly debilitating in others. Up   
   to 15% of adults in the United States have tinnitus, where nearly 40%   
   of sufferers have the condition chronically and actively seek relief.   
      
   A recent study from researchers at the University of Michigan's Kresge   
   Hearing Research Institute suggests relief may be possible.   
      
   Susan Shore, Ph.D., Professor Emerita in Michigan Medicine's Department   
   of Otolaryngology and U-M's Departments of Physiology and Biomedical   
   Engineering, led research on how the brain processes bi-sensory   
   information, and how these processes can be harnessed for personalized   
   stimulation to treat tinnitus.   
      
   Her team's findings were published in JAMA Network Open.   
      
   The study, a double-blind, randomized clinical trial, recruited 99   
   individuals with somatic tinnitus, a form of the condition in which   
   movements such as clenching the jaw, or applying pressure to the forehead,   
   result in a noticeable change in pitch or loudness of experienced   
   sounds. Nearly 70% of tinnitus sufferers have the somatic form.   
      
   According to Shore, candidates with bothersome, somatic tinnitus, as   
   well as normal-to-moderate hearing loss, were eligible to participate.   
      
   "After enrollment, participants received a portable device developed and   
   manufactured by in2being, LLC, for in-home use," she said. "The devices   
   were programmed to present each participant's personal tinnitus spectrum,   
   which was combined with electrical stimulation to form a bi-sensory   
   stimulus, while maintaining participant and study team blinding."   
   Study participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The first   
   group received bi-sensory, or active, treatment first, while the second   
   received sound-alone, or control, treatment.   
      
   For the first six weeks, participants were instructed to use their   
   devices for 30 minutes each day. The next six weeks gave participants   
   a break from daily use, followed by six more weeks of the treatment not   
   received in the beginning of the study.   
      
   Shore notes that every week, participants completed the Tinnitus   
   Functional Index, or TFI, and Tinnitus Handicap Inventory, or THI, which   
   are questionnaires that measure the impact tinnitus has on individuals'   
   lives.   
      
   Participants also had their tinnitus loudness assessed during this time.   
      
   The team found that when participants received the bi-sensory treatment,   
   they consistently reported improved quality of life, lower handicap   
   scores and significant reductions in tinnitus loudness. However, these   
   effects were not seen when receiving sound-only stimulation.   
      
   Further, more than 60% of participants reported significantly reduced   
   tinnitus symptoms after the six weeks of active treatment, but not   
   control treatment.   
      
   This is consistent with an earlier study by Shore's team, which showed   
   that the longer participants received active treatment, the greater the   
   reduction in their tinnitus symptoms.   
      
   "This study paves the way for the use of personalized, bi-sensory   
   stimulation as an effective treatment for tinnitus, providing hope for   
   millions of tinnitus sufferers," said Shore.   
      
   Auricle Inc., the exclusive licensee of the patents related to the   
   bi-sensory stimulation, was launched with the help of Innovation   
   Partnerships, the central hub of research commercialization activity at   
   the University of Michigan.   
      
   Auricle will work towards gaining regulatory clearance and then   
   commercializing Shore's novel bi-sensory tinnitus treatment.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Health_&_Medicine   
                   # Hearing_Loss # Hypertension # Personalized_Medicine #   
                   Mental_Health_Research   
             o Mind_&_Brain   
                   # Tinnitus # Hearing_Impairment # Perception # Depression   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Tinnitus o Phantom_limb o Double_blind o Visual_acuity   
             o Unsaturated_fat o Evidence-based_medicine o Guide_dog   
             o Stuttering   
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   Michigan_Medicine_-_University_of_Michigan. Original written by Jina   
   Sawani. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Gerilyn R. Jones, David T. Martel, Travis L. Riffle, Josh Errickson,   
         Jacqueline R. Souter, Gregory J. Basura, Emily Stucken, Kara   
         C. Schvartz- Leyzac, Susan E. Shore. Reversing Synchronized Brain   
         Circuits Using Targeted Auditory-Somatosensory Stimulation to   
         Treat Phantom Percepts.   
      
         JAMA Network Open, 2023; 6 (6): e2315914 DOI: 10.1001/   
         jamanetworkopen.2023.15914   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230605181219.htm   
      
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