• Young Sang Cho, Sungwon Park, Ga-Young Kim, Mini Jo, Sung Hwa Hong, and Il Joon Moon.
• Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
• Yonsei Med. J. 2023 Oct 1; 64 (10): 618624618-624.

PurposeTinnitus is one of the most common health conditions worldwide. Although various methods of treatment have been used, the condition is still difficult to manage or cure. This study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic effects of transcutaneous trigeminal electrical stimulation (TTES) combined with notched sound therapy (NST) on patients with tinnitus.Materials And MethodsA clinical trial was conducted prospectively from September 2020 to September 2021 at a single center in South Korea. In total, 14 patients took part in this trial. Periodic visits and tele-monitoring were used to assess treatment compliance and collect data, including electroencephalography (EEG), photoplethysmography (PPG), tinnitus handicap inventory (THI), tinnitus magnitude index, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and 36-item short-form survey (SF-36) results.ResultsChanges after intervention were analyzed with paired t-test. This study showed that alpha waves in the left hemisphere measured by EEG (p=0.024), autonomic nervous system balance (p=0.007), and stress level (p=0.022) measured by PPG significantly changed after intervention. Also, THI scores especially emotional symptoms (p=0.029) and catastrophic symptoms (p=0.043) decreased after treatment. The SF-36 score, both mental component summary and physical component summary score (each p<0.001), increased significantly, whereas the PSQI score (p<0.001) and BDI score (p<0.001) decreased after TTES and NST.ConclusionBased on the results of our study, we could confirm that TTES combined with NST can significantly improve tinnitus, catastrophic symptoms, and the overall quality of life of patients.© Copyright: Yonsei University College of Medicine 2023.

11 keywords...

hide…