TINNITUS SUPPRESSION BY ELECTRICAL STIMULATION

CHRONIC, INTRACTABLE TINNITUS DISABLES MORE THAN A MILLION OTHERWISE HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS IN THE UNITED STATES. NEURAL PROSTHETICS RESEARCH, INC. PROPOSES TO COMPLETE DEVELOPMENT OF IMPLANTABLE ELECTRICAL DEVICES DESIGNED TO SUPPRESS CHRONIC HIGH-TONE TINNITUS, WHILE CONSERVING RESIDUAL HEARING ACROSS THE SPEECH FREQUENCY RANGE. DEVELOPMENT OF THIS DEVICE IS BASED UPON OBSERVATIONS WITH COCHLEAR IMPLANTPATIENTS STUDIED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT SAN FRANCISCO AND AT DUKE UNIVERSITY, AS WELL AS UPON ANIMAL STUDIES OF AUDITORY NERVE SUPPRESSION. THE FORMER STUDIES HAVE REVEALED THAT AN APPROPRIATELY STIMULATED COCHLEAR PROSTHESIS PROFOUNDLY SUPPRESSES TINNITUS. BOTH SERIES OF STUDIES INDICATE THAT TINNITUS CAN PROBABLY BE EFFECTIVELY SUPPRESSED WITH MINIMAL INTERFERENCE TO HEARING IN MORE REMOVED COCHLEAR REGIONS. IN THESE PROPOSED DEVICE-DEVELOPMENT STUDIES: (1) EXTRACOCHLEAR STIMULATION SITES EFFECTIVE FOR SUPPRESSING TINNITUS WILL BE DEFINED; (2) OPTIMUM ELECTRODE CONFIGURATIONS, STIMULUS FORMS, AND STIMULUS SEQUENCING WILLBE DEFINED FOR PRODUCING PROFOUND TINNITUS SUPPRESSION WITH MINIMAL-LEVEL AND MINIMUM-PERIOD STIMULATION; AND (3) MODELSOF SUPPRESSION INSTRUMENTS SUITABLE FOR APPLICATION IN AN INVESTIGATIONAL DEVICE EXEMPTION (IDE) CLINICAL TRIAL WILL BE BUILT. THESE STUDIES SHOULD LEAD TO FINAL SPECIFICATION OF THE DESIGN OF A PRACTICAL TINNITUS INSTRUMENT, EFFECTIVE FOR A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM SEVERE, INTRACTABLE CHRONIC TINNITUS.