Combined Low Frequency Frontal and Temporal rTMS Treatment in Chronic Tinnitus

University of Regensburg (UR)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Tinnitus

Treatments: Device: Temporal low frequency rTMS; Device: Combined frontal and temporal rTMS

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT01261949

Uni-Reg-rTMS-Tinnitus-02

Details and patient eligibility

About

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation is used to modulate the auditory neural pathways caused by hearing loss and leading to the phantom auditory perception of sound in the absence of an external or internal acoustic stimulus.

Full description

Tinnitus is the phantom auditory perception of sound in the absence of an external or internal acoustic stimulus. It is a frequent problem which can interfere significantly with the ability to lead a normal life. Treatment is difficult. Most available therapies focus on habituation rather than treating the cause. Tinnitus is thought to be generated in the brain, as a result of functional reorganization of auditory neural pathways and tonotopic maps in the central auditory system, following damage to the peripheral auditory system. Low-frequency rTMS has been investigated for the treatment of hyperexcitability disorders such as auditory hallucinations and tinnitus. Pilot data indicate that the beneficial effect of low-frequency rTMS can be enhanced by low frequency rTMS of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). In the proposed study we investigate whether low frequency rTMS of the DLPFC improves therapeutic efficacy of low-frequency rTMS on tinnitus in a controlled trial.

Enrollment: 50 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 80 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Diagnosis of subjective chronic tinnitus
• Duration of tinnitus more than 3 months

Exclusion criteria

• Objective tinnitus
• Treatable cause of the tinnitus
• Involvement in other treatments for tinnitus at the same time
• Clinically relevant psychiatric comorbidity
• Clinically relevant unstable internal or neurological comorbidity
• History of or evidence of significant brain malformation or neoplasm, head injury
• Cerebral vascular events
• Neurodegenerative disorder affecting the brain or prior brain surgery;
• Metal objects in and around body that can not be removed
• Pregnancy
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• Prior treatment with TMS

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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50 participants in 2 patient groups

Combined frontal and temporal rTMS

Experimental group

Description:

Combined low frequency frontal and temporal transcranial magnetic stimulation of auditory cortex and right DLPFC

Treatment:

Device: Combined frontal and temporal rTMS

Temporal low frequency rTMS

Experimental group

Description:

temporal low frequency rTMS of auditory cortex

Treatment:

Device: Temporal low frequency rTMS