Evaluating How a Tinnitus Implant Affects Tinnitus Loudness in Adults with Chronic Tinnitus and Varying Levels of Hearing Loss

Not Applicable

Not yet recruiting

• Conditions: Tinnitus; Hearing Loss, Bilateral or Unilateral; Normal Hearing

• Registration Number: NCT06641999
• Lead Sponsor: Cochlear

Brief Summary

This study will test an experimental Tinnitus Implant System that consists of a cochlear implant, sound processor and programming software. The Tinnitus implant is surgically placed under the skin just behind the ear in the mastoid bone. It has an electrode that extends from the implant into the promontory bone of the cochlea which emits electrical signals that stimulate the auditory nerve. The sound processor is worn behind the ear and powers the implant via the coil. The study will be conducted in adults with moderate to severe chronic tinnitus who have normal hearing to moderately severe hearing loss in the inner ear. The study participants will undergo a series of tests that include evaluations of tinnitus loudness and annoyance, and self-reported questionnaires on their tinnitus and general health.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Status Verified: 2024-10
• Study First Submitted: 2024-10-08
• Study First Submitted QC: 2024-10-13
• Last Update Submitted: 2024-10-13
• Study First Posted: 2024-10-15
• Last Update Posted: 2024-10-15
• Study Start: 2025-01
• Primary Completion: 2026-04
• Study Completion: 2026-04

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 16

Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

• Pulsatile tinnitus.
• Any anatomical or structural abnormalities of the inner ear, cochlear nerve, or brainstem that would negatively impact response to study intervention (determined in a temporal bone CT and if necessary (e.g. possibility of vestibular/acoustic schwannoma) by a MRI scan of the head (of sufficient quality at the discretion of the investigator) not more than five years old at the time of enrolment
• Medical contraindications limiting correct placement, activation, or treatment (determined by medical history; contraindications include brain or major ear surgery, brain or temporal bone tumor(s), recurrent ear infections within the last year, otosclerosis, prior major head trauma that results in sudden injury that causes damage to the brain and results in lasting cognitive impairment).
• Any medical condition, including mental illness or substance abuse, deemed by the Investigator to likely interfere with a patient's ability to sign informed consent, cooperate and/or participate in the study, or interfere with the interpretation of the results (incl. pregnant or breastfeeding women or patients with unrealistic expectations).
• Presence of clinically diagnosed depression or anxiety determined by a psychological state evaluation (if PHQ-9 > 9 or GAD-7 > 9).
• Active (currently or within two months prior to enrolment) use of medications (taking regularly scheduled antidepressant, anxiolytic, antipsychotic or antiepileptic medications, or other neuromodulator agents) or other tinnitus treatments.
• It is permissible to include people who use such medications at lower doses as a sleep aid or for people who intermittently use such medications for situational anxiety (e.g., Ativan before airplane travel). A change in medication during the trial should be avoided.
• It is permissible to include people who prefer to use a hearing aid to amplify ipsilateral hearing loss. The start of using a hearing aid during the trial should be avoided.
• Investigator site personnel directly affiliated with this study and/or their immediate families; immediate family is defined as a spouse, parent, child, or sibling.
• Cochlear employees or employees of Contract Research Organizations or contractors engaged by Cochlear for the purposes of this investigation.
• Current participation, or participation in another interventional clinical study/trial in the past 60 days, involving an investigational drug or device (unless the other investigation was/is a Cochlear sponsored investigation and determined by the investigator or Sponsor to not impact this investigation).

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: SINGLE_GROUP

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Mean change in tinnitus loudness from baseline to 6 months post-activation of the Tinnitus Implant System	Pre-operative baseline to 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Self-reported tinnitus loudness as measured on the Visual Analogue Scale-Loudness (VAS-L) where 0 is equivalent to absence of tinnitus and 100 indicates tinnitus of the greatest loudness severity

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Reported device or procedure related adverse events and harms	Pre-operative baseline to 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Number of device and procedure-related adverse events and reported harms
Mean change in tinnitus annoyance from baseline to 6 months post activation of the Tinnitus Implant System	Pre-operative baseline to 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Self-reported tinnitus loudness as measured on the Visual Analogue Scale-Annoyance (VAS-A) where 0 is equivalent to absence of tinnitus and 100 indicates tinnitus of the greatest annoyance severity
Mean change in tinnitus perception from baseline to 6 months post activation of the Tinnitus Implant System	Pre-operative baseline to 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Self-reporting on the Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) questionnaire
Change in self-reported matches of tinnitus pitch and loudness to acoustic stimuli	Pre-operative baseline, activation (Implant activation is approximately 10 weeks after surgical implantation of Tinnitus implant), 3 months post activation, 6 months post activation	Patient reported matching of tinnitus pitch (Hz) and loudness (dB SPL) with acoustic stimuli
Mean change in health-related quality of life with Tinnitus Implant System	6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Score of Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI) questionnaire
Mean change in health status with Tinnitus Implant System	At 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Score of Patient Global Impression of Change (PGIC) questionnaire
Mean change in speech perception in quiet from baseline to 6 months post-activation	Pre-operative baseline to 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Word recognition in quiet presented at 65 dB SPL in the unaided condition
Mean change in hearing thresholds from baseline to 6 months post-activation	Pre-operative baseline to 6 months post Tinnitus Implant System activation	Bone conduction thresholds (dB HL) at any tested frequency (0.25, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 4 kHz) from baseline to 6 months post-activation in the implanted ear

Trial Locations

Locations (2)

Antwerp University Hospital (UZA); 🇧🇪 Edegem, Belgium

University Medical Center Utrecht; 🇳🇱 Utrecht, GA, Netherlands