Investigation of the NMDA Antagonist Ketamine as a Treatment for Tinnitus

Launched by NEW YORK STATE PSYCHIATRIC INSTITUTE · Nov 6, 2017

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

Tinnitus has a prevalence of approximately 1 in 10 adults in the United States. Among those with tinnitus, 36% had nearly constant symptoms and almost 30% of those report that their tinnitus as a big or a very big problem. Currently there are few effective treatments for tinnitus, and no approved medications. Cognitive behavioral and retraining therapy provide some relief, but many patients fail to respond.

Animal research and human studies indicate that maladaptive plasticity plays a role in tinnitus, which involves glutamatergic signaling largely at the NMDA and AMPA receptors. Additiona...

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Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Participant aged 21-60
• • Tinnitus associated with at least mild sensori-neural hearing loss of at least 6 months duration
• • Score at least 32 on the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and a score of 5dB or greater on the minimum masking level
• • Tinnitus not due to medical disease (other than sensorineural hearing loss)
• • Score of at least 14 on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scales with a score of at least 2 on the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (in the distressed group).
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • DSM-V psychiatric disorders other than mild-moderate depression and anxiety, including substance use disorder.
• • History of recreational ketamine use, recreational PCP use,exposure to ketamine as an anesthetic, or an adverse reaction to ketamine
• • Currently taking psychotropic medication (e.g.antipsychotics, antidepressants, benzodiazepines)
• • Presence or positive history of significant medical or neurological illness, including high blood pressure (SBP \>140, DBP \> 90), cardiac illness, abnormality on EKG, head injury.
• • Pregnancy, abortion, or lack of effective birth control during 15 days before the scan
• • Metal implants, pacemaker, other metal (e.g. shrapnel or surgical prostheses) or paramagnetic objects contained within the
• • Medicinal patch that cannot be removed for the scans.