Magnetic pulses may just help treat tinnitus

This study state that the researchers do not believe that the rTMS should be used as a replacement for effective management strategies that are currently available for tinnitus.

Out of all the people who are classified as suffering from chronic tinnitus, nearly 20 percent report that their ailment is clinically significant and negatively affect their quality of life. Tinnitus can interfere with people’s ability to sleep or concentrate, and it is sometimes disabling, the study authors explained.

Robert L. Folmer – of the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Oregon Health & Science University, Portland along with colleagues wanted to test out using low frequency rTMS to reduce brain activity in targeted regions to specifically help people suffering from tinnitus.

There were 2000 pulses included during this treatment over a period of 10 days. Patients were then evaluated at the 1, 2, 4, 13 and 26-week mark after the end of the treatment. The severity of tinnitus in the patients was measured using TFI or Tinnitus Functional Index.

Those receiving the active treatment had a 31 percent reduction in their tinnitus symptoms at the 26-week mark.

In the study, approximately 56 percent of the participants who received TMS improve after 10 session while only 22 had improved after the same number of sessions with a control treatment.

While the study was small, the team is already planning to expand the trial and look at whether the treatment has lasting benefits out to the 12-month mark.

Tinnitus is a condition which is characterized by swishing, ringing or certain other noises which appear to originate in a person’s head or ear. This problem affects around one in every five people and is usually a symptom of ear injuries and age-related hearing loss. To participate in the study, patients were required to have had tinnitus for at least a year or more.

A few of the current available treatments include medications to alleviate severity of symptoms & targeting a few contributing health conditions which may impact the problem as well as methods for suppressing the sound. In light of these encouraging results, Folmer hopes to conduct a larger clinical trial to refine protocols for the eventual clinical use of TMS for tinnitus.

Are electromagnetic pulses the cure? The research is in its infancy but shows promise to chronic patients who are not responding to other treatments.