A single shot into the ear: can a new drug quiet constant ringing?
NCT ID NCT07826507
First seen Sep 17, 2026 · Last updated Sep 18, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers are testing whether a one-time injection of an experimental drug called paliroden into the middle ear is safe and can help adults with chronic, constant tinnitus in both ears. Participants, ages 18 to 75, have normal hearing thresholds but struggle to understand speech in noisy settings, a pattern linked to cochlear synaptopathy. The trial compares the drug against a placebo injection and tracks safety, drug levels in the blood, and changes in hearing and listening tests over about six months.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- paliroden (CIL001), an experimental drug injected into the middle ear
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward the first drug treatment for chronic tinnitus tied to cochlear synaptopathy, a hearing-nerve problem that makes speech hard to follow in noisy places.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage trial with about 60 participants, so safety and benefit are still unproven. A single injection may not reach the inner ear in enough quantity, and tinnitus has many causes that one drug may not address.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1/2
Runs two stages together: safety and dose first, then whether the treatment works.
- Participants
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About 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jan 2027
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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A company
The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 75 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Native speaker of English 2. Able and willing to give consent for the study 3. Age 18-75 years (inclusive) at the time of signing the informed consent 4. Report binaural, chronic, constant, subjective tinnitus for at least 6 months 5. Hearing thresholds within normal limits (≤ 20 dB HL at 0.25 to 8 kHz, plus 3 and 6 kHz) 6. Speech-in-noise deficit (at least 3 dB SNR loss in comparison to normative value of the AE-Matrix test) in both ears 7. No concurrent tinnitus treatment 8. Be considered as reliable and capable of adhering to the protocol, according to the judgment of the investigator 9. Signed informed consent as described in § 11.3 which includes compliance with the requirements and restrictions listed in the informed consent form (ICF) and in this protocol Exclusion Criteria: 1. Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score \< 26 2. History of somatic/objective tinnitus as defined by AAO-HNS guidelines (e.g., pulsatile/whooshing sounds pulsating in synchrony with heartbeat, or caused by temporo-mandibular joint dysfunction) 3. Known otologic pathology (e.g., otosclerosis, history of autoimmune hearing loss, radiation-induced hearing loss, fluctuating hearing, endolymphatic hydrops, Ménière's disease, vestibular schwannoma, history of sudden sensorineural hearing loss, Neurofibromatosis Type 2) 4. History of otologic surgery (apart from tympanostomy tube insertion if more than one year prior to inclusion visit) 5. Untreated hypothyroidism 6. Use of prohibited concomitant therapies as described in § 6.10 7. Current use or history of platinum-based chemotherapy 8. Concurrent malignancies that require treatment 9. Abnormal otoscopy as defined by less than 90% of the tympanic membrane visible (e.g., occluding cerumen, ear drum perforation) 10. Current middle ear pathology (e.g., otitis media, tympanic membrane perforation) 11. Abnormal tympanogram (other than type A) 12. Conductive hearing loss (\> 10 dB difference between air- and bone-conduction hearing thresholds) 13. Asymmetric hearing thresholds (more than 15 dB difference between left and right ear) at 0.25 to 8 kHz, plus 3 and 6 kHz 14. Lactation, known pregnancy, positive pregnancy test at either Screening (urine) or Baseline (serum) for Women of Childbearing Potential (WOCBP), or plan to become pregnant during the study 15. Liver Enzyme Lab Outcomes within the previous 2 months (or assessed at Baseline if not available at Screening ), see § 12.1.1: 1. Bilirubin \> upper limit normal (ULN) 2. Liver transaminases (Aspartate Aminotransferase \[AST\] and Alanine Aminotransferase \[ALT\]) \> 2 times ULN 3. Gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) \> 2 times ULN 16. Clinically significant electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities: a. Marked baseline prolongation of QT/QTc interval (e.g., repeated demonstration of a QTc interval \> 450 ms) 17. History of additional risk factors for Torsades de Pointes (e.g., heart failure, hypokalemia, family history of Long QT Syndrome) 18. Concurrent participation in another clinical study or participation in another clinical study within 30 days or five half-lives of the experimental drug (whichever is longer) prior to screening visit (V0) 19. Diagnosed anxiety disorders, psychosis, depression, schizophrenia, attempted suicide, or other significant psychiatric conditions that could impact their ability to cooperate and comply with the study protocol 20. Major surgery (at the discretion of the Principal Investigator or medically qualified designee) within eight weeks before screening or scheduled/planned surgery within the time frame of the study
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The official record
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
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