Shocking tinnitus away: new brain retraining trial offers hope
NCT ID NCT07393880
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests a new way to treat chronic tinnitus by pairing gentle electrical stimulation on the back of the head with a listening exercise. One hundred adults with constant ringing in the ears will be randomly assigned to receive real or fake stimulation combined with active or passive listening. The goal is to see if this approach can lower the perceived loudness and emotional impact of tinnitus over six months.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 100 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jan 2026
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2029
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
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 80 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: * Adults aged 18-80 years * Continuous subjective tinnitus for \>3 months and ≤5 years * Predominantly tonal tinnitus (unilateral or bilateral) * Screening THI score 28-76 * Minimum Masking Level (MML) 20-80 dB HL * No prior tinnitus neuromodulation treatment * Able to comply with eight sessions over four weeks and follow-up assessments Exclusion Criteria: * Objective tinnitus or predominantly somatic tinnitus * Pulsatile tinnitus * Evidence of conductive hearing loss (abnormal otoscopy or tympanometry) * Pure-tone audiometry exclusions: \>40 dB HL at any frequency 250 Hz-1 kHz OR \>80 dB HL at any frequency 2-8 kHz in either ear * Hearing aid use initiated within the past 90 days * Active implantable medical device (e.g., pacemaker, DBS, cochlear implant) * LDL \<30 dB SL at 500 Hz in either ear * Diagnosis of temporomandibular joint disorder or occipital neuralgia * Severe anxiety (STAI \>120/160) * Cognitive impairment (MMSE \<25) * Severe depressive symptoms (BDI ≥30) * Diagnosis of Menière's disease * Current pregnancy * Involvement in medicolegal cases * History of auditory hallucinations * Current prescription of central nervous system drugs likely to alter neuromodulatory function (e.g., noradrenergic, dopaminergic, serotonergic, benzodiazepine, cholinergic, or other psychoactive medications) * Currently enrolled in another interventional 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 places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience (TCIN)
RECRUITINGDublin, Dublin, D02, Ireland
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Turmeric compound tested against the ringing in millions of ears
- Is hearing loss becoming a bigger cause of disability? a national study digs into the data
- Rewiring the brain to silence Tinnitus's grip?
- Can a new pill silence the ringing in your ears?
- Could nicotine gum silence the ringing in your ears?