Evidence map›Paper›PMID 21808984›Full record

Trial reportJournal of neurology2012

Treatment of chronic tinnitus with repeated sessions of prefrontal transcranial direct current stimulation: outcomes from an open-label pilot study.

Elmar Frank, Martin Schecklmann, Michael Landgrebe, Julia Burger, Peter Kreuzer, Timm B Poeppl, Tobias Kleinjung, Göran Hajak, Berthold Langguth

Registry-linked trialAbstract readClinical Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of neurology, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05964725 (The Study on Effect and Neural Network Mechanism of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for Sudden Deafness With Tinnitus), which is not on this map. Cited by 60 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
60citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT05964725 naunknown statusnot on this mapstarted 2023, after this paper: background citation

The Study on Effect and Neural Network Mechanism of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for Sudden Deafness With Tinnitus

TypeinterventionalSponsorSun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen UniversityRan2023 to 2024Enrolled86ConditionsTinnitus, Subjective, Sudden Deafness, Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation, Double-Blind MethodArmsReceive traditional medical therapy and transcranial direct current stimulation, Receive traditional medical therapy and sham stimulation
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

60 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
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  6. Repeated sessions of transcranial direct current stimulation for treatment of chronic subjective tinnitus: a pilot randomized controlled trial.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2016
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  9. Tinnitus Rehabilitation Through Electrical Stimulation as a Neuromodulation Method: A Scoping Review.Indian journal of otolaryngology and head and neck surgery : official publication of the Association of Otolaryngologists of India · 2025
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  14. The Evaluation of Effects of Electrical Stimulation in Treatment of Patients with Chronic Tinnitus with Normal Hearing Sensitivity.Indian journal of otolaryngology and head and neck surgery : official publication of the Association of Otolaryngologists of India · 2023
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Elmar FrankDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Regensburg, Universitaetsstrasse 84, 93053, Regensburg, Germany.
Martin Schecklmann
Michael Landgrebe
Julia Burger
Peter Kreuzer
Timm B Poeppl
Tobias Kleinjung
Göran Hajak
Berthold Langguth

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Tinnitus is the perception of sound in the absence of an environmental sound source. Abnormal activity in central auditory pathways is considered as the neuronal correlate of tinnitus. However, there is increasing evidence from neuroimaging studies for an additional involvement of the frontal cortex in the pathophysiology of tinnitus, especially concerning its attentional and emotional aspects. Recently, in a subgroup of tinnitus patients, temporary reduction of tinnitus intensity and tinnitus-related distress has been reported after bifrontal tDCS with the anode over the right and the cathode over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). The aim of this study was to investigate whether repeated application of bifrontal tDCS results in longer-lasting reduction of tinnitus and may represent a potential treatment approach. Thirty-two patients with chronic and treatment-resistant tinnitus received six sessions of bifrontal tDCS (1.5 mA, 30 min, two sessions per week) with the anode over the right and the cathode over the left DLPFC. Treatment outcome was assessed with several standardized tinnitus questionnaires, numeric rating scales, and a depression scale. In the entire group, beneficial effects of bifrontal tDCS on tinnitus were found for numeric rating scores of loudness, unpleasantness, and discomfort, but not in tinnitus or depression scales. Exploratory analysis revealed an effect of gender on treatment effects with female patients demonstrating a better response in several scores. Our open-label pilot study suggests some beneficial effect of bifrontal tDCS (anode right and cathode left) in the treatment of severe tinnitus, warranting further controlled studies.

Indexed as

Electric Stimulation TherapyChronic DiseaseFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPilot ProjectsPrefrontal CortexTinnitusTreatment Outcome

Identifiers

PMID21808984

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.