Task-Based Functional MRI (fMRI) in Patients With Severely Bothersome Tinnitus

Tinnitus Clinical Trial

Official title: Task-Based Functional MRI (fMRI) Exploration of the Cortical Attention Network in Patients With Severely Bothersome Tinnitus

Status Withdrawn

Clinical Trial Summary

Tinnitus is a poorly understood symptom that is often described either as ringing, clicking, ocean sounds, or nature sounds. There is no cure for tinnitus. Approximately 50 million Americans are affected with a small minority being severely affected. This study targets patients with tinnitus who are severely bothered. Through MRI the investigators plan to evaluate the cortical networks of the brain in hopes to better understand this complex process.

Clinical Trial Description

Tinnitus is the perceived sensation of sound without actual acoustic stimulation that affects 50 million Americans, with 15 million being significantly bothered. Using functional connectivity MRI (fcMRI), the investigators have found distinct differences in the cortical attention networks between patients with bothersome tinnitus and age-matched controls. These novel findings suggest that some of the classic and most disturbing characteristics of tinnitus result from derangements in cortical pathways. Using a validated task-based functional MRI (fMRI) paradigm developed at Washington University, the investigators will explore the ventral and dorsal frontoparietal cortical attention networks in patients with bothersome tinnitus and non-tinnitus controls.

This will be an experimental task-based fMRI pilot study involving the neurocognitive and neuroimaging assessment of patients with severely bothersome tinnitus.

The investigators plan to perform a pilot study and enroll a total of 10 subjects to undergo task-based imaging. These results will be compared to a control (no tinnitus) cohort (n=35) that has already undergone task-based fMRI. This task-based paradigm will allow us to advance knowledge about the role of the attention, control, and other cortical networks in the development and maintenance of bothersome tinnitus.

The investigators anticipate it will take one year to successfully enroll and test a total of 10 patients. All scans will be performed on the Washington University grounds. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Tinnitus

• NCT number: NCT01172262
• Study type: Observational
• Source: Washington University School of Medicine
• Status: Withdrawn
• Start date: February 2011
• Completion date: February 2012