Electroacupuncture With or Without Combined Warm Needling for Tinnitus

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Tinnitus, Subjective; Tinnitus
• Interventions: Procedure: Electroacupuncture (EA); Procedure: Electroacupuncture Combined With Warm Needling (EAWN); Other: Waitlist Control

• Registration Number: NCT05557357
• Lead Sponsor: Lai Fun HO, PhD

Brief Summary

This randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of either electroacupuncture alone or combined with warm needling in reducing tinnitus loudness and improving the impairment caused by tinnitus in Hong Kong.

Detailed Description

This study is a prospective, multicenter, assessor-blind, three-arm, parallel-group, randomized waitlist-controlled trial. A total of 90 eligible subjects with tinnitus will be recruited and randomly assigned to electroacupuncture (EA), electroacupuncture combined with warm needling (EAWN) or waitlist control with n=30 subjects each group. The entire study period will last for 10 weeks, including a 5-week intervention period and a 5-week follow-up period. Outcome measures include the loudness of tinnitus and the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory. Any adverse event will be observed and recorded for safety assessment. The study findings will provide evidence to determine the efficacy and safety of electroacupuncture with or without combined warm needling for tinnitus in Hong Kong.

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2022-09-18
• Study First Submitted QC: 2022-09-25
• Study First Posted: 2022-09-28
• Study Start: 2022-12-01
• Primary Completion: 2024-04-12
• Study Completion: 2024-04-12
• Status Verified: 2025-05
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-05-21
• Last Update Posted: 2025-05-25

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 90

Inclusion Criteria

• Diagnosed with subjective tinnitus;
• Male and female, age 50 to 70 years old;
• Unilateral or bilateral tinnitus for 0.5-24 months;
• Loudness of tinnitus rated 3 points or more on a 0-10 numeric rating scale (NRS) at the time of enrollment; and
• Agree to sign the informed consent form voluntarily.

Exclusion Criteria

• Known disease conditions that could cause tinnitus such as Meniere's syndrome, acoustic duct diseases, and middle ear diseases;
• History of head trauma;
• Currently using cardiac pacemaker or metal implants;
• Known severe cardiac diseases, cerebrovascular diseases, renal diseases, or hematologic diseases;
• Known severe psychiatric or psychological disorder;
• Pregnant, lactation or expecting a pregnancy during the study period;
• Severe needle phobia;
• Known hypersensitive reaction after acupuncture and moxibustion treatment or an inability to cooperate with the acupuncture and moxibustion procedure;
• Incapable to understand and answer the questions of the assessors in the study; and
• Other factors deemed unsuitable for inclusion in the study by investigators.

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
EA Group	Electroacupuncture (EA)	Subjects assigned to EA group will receive EA treatment twice weekly for 5 weeks.
EAWN Group	Electroacupuncture Combined With Warm Needling (EAWN)	Subjects assigned to EAWN group will receive EAWN treatment twice weekly for 5 weeks.
Waitlist Control Group	Waitlist Control	Subjects assigned to waitlist control group will not receive treatment during the 10-week waiting period after baseline assessment.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in Tinnitus Loudness	Baseline, Week 5, and Week 10	A 0-10 numeric rating scale (NRS) will be used for rating loudness of tinnitus. Higher score indicates greater tinnitus loudness and its influence.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI)	Baseline, Week 5, and Week 10	THI is a 25-item self-report measure to determine tinnitus handicap severity with good reliability and validity. The THI total score ranges from 0 to 100, with higher score denoting higher level of severity.

Trial Locations

Locations (3)

Pok Oi Hospital-Chinese Medicine Polyclinic (Tin Shui Wai); 🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China

Pok Oi Hospital-The Chinese University of Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Clinic cum Training ad Research Centre (Yuen Long District); 🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China

Pok Oi Hospital-The Chinese University of Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Clinic cum Training and Research Centre (Shatin District); 🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China