An Update: Emerging Drugs for Tinnitus

Introduction: During the last decade, a number of candidate drugs for the treatment of tinnitus have emerged with the hope of alleviating the burden of millions of sufferers with a persisting ringing in their ears. Knowledge of the pathophysiologic mechanisms has progressed remarkably in the recent years, which has led to the identification of potential new drug targets for the treatment of tinnitus. However, pharmacologic interventions are still limited. Areas covered: In this editorial results from recent Phase 3 and Phase 2a trials investigating the NMDA receptor antagonist AM-101 from Auris Medical, the AMPA receptor antagonist BGG492 from Novartis and the Kv3 modulator AUT00063 from Autifony Therapeutics will be discussed. In this context, we will reevaluate the translational development approach from animal models to clinical trials and seize this opportunity to debate and improve future R&D in tinnitus pipeline.

Expert opinion: In spite of huge advances in pathophysiologic knowledge and research methodology in the last decades, pharmaceutical research in tinnitus still represents a high-risk field. Important research directions include the identification of potential therapeutic targets and the development of objective outcome measurements to facilitate translational research.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329485513_An_update_emerging_drugs_for_tinnitus

PDF is downloadable via the ResearchGate page.

 

PDF: see attached file.

 

"This auditory condition is experienced by a large proportion of the population and affects more than 10% of the population worldwide (estimated 70 million people in Europe) [3]. For near 3% of the population, tinnitus becomes a chronic bothersome and incapacitating symptom [4,5]."

3% of the world's population are over 200 million people.

 

Yes, but tinnitus is not a life-threatening condition, so why would FDA do anything to fast-track or speed things up?

 

I think they are referring to the European population, not the worldwide population....

 

Thank you! Still an insane number of people.

 

The shocking pervasiveness of this condition is demonstrated when you realize that in any populated environment throughout most of the developed world one in 10 has this to a detectable degree and one in 33 has this to a degree that seriously undermines their wellbeing.
Given this extensiveness, there should be a concentrated globalized effort to eradicate this.

 

Sure is, the stats in Canada are 4 out of every 10 have it.

 

According to BTA more than 1 in 8 people suffer from tinnitus. That's 13.2 %. The world population was estimated to have reached 7.7 billion people as of April 2019. That means 1,016,400,000 of people suffer from tinnitus to date.

There are 27,938 registered members with only a few active users on the internet's largest tinnitus support forum.

Something doesn't add up here.

Source: https://www.tinnitus.org.uk/blog/more-people-living-with-tinnitus-than-previously-thought

 

On those Facebook tinnitus support groups there are also not even 100,000 people in TOTAL!

Is the conclusion then that 99.9999999999% find tinnitus no bother and doesn't seek online information and support for it?

 

I also wonder if patients being told that ‘science will never find a medical treatment’ (in their lifetime) to actually reduce tinnitus stops them from looking for online support, and looking up and supporting research. At least it seems to me that most people get told to get used to it and that nothing can be done.

But I’d really like to know how many people worldwide have bothersome tinnitus and how man have severely debilitating tinnitus.

 

I remember the data about France:
67 millions of citizens
12 millions have experienced tinnitus once (but it faded)
3.7 millions have permanent but not bothersome tinnitus
300 000 have bothersome tinnitus

But I don't think there are 300 000 french registered people on tinnitus forums and tinnitus FB groups.

It is similar to my own experience:
I know 9 people around me who have permanent but not bothersome tinnitus
I am the only one to have permanent and bothersome tinnitus.

 

Never knew Facebook groups had over 100,000 people in total. I usually don't like sweeping statements but in a publication 100 Fragen Zum Tinnitus (Thora, Goebel, 2005) they mention that roughly 90% of tinnitus patients are ok with the noise (or learn to live with it) and that 10% is debilitated by it.

Still, 10% out of 1,016,400,000 is 101,640,000 and that's a lot. One would think there would be way more people joining tinnitus forums, and more organizations/pharma trying to develop effective treatments. If for nothing else, imagine the amount of money spent annually on the care for tinnitus patients and the amount of money hundreds of millions healed tinnitus patients could generate for their state budgets (GDP per hour worked etc.).

• Tune Into This $3.5 Billion Dollar Niche That Has Over 50 Million Americans Buzzed From This Annoying Sound
• An economic evaluation of the cost of tinnitus management in the UK

 

This is slightly off topic, but since you guys are talking numbers, I've been curious about this statistic that I read on Google:

"The Hyperacusis Network reports that 1 in 50,000 people has hyperacusis and that 1 in 1,000 people who have tinnitus will also have hyperacusis."

If my math is correct, 50K goes in to 7.7 billion global population 1,540 times. So, are there really only 15-hundred H sufferers? That can't be possible? Surely on this forum alone, as it nears 30K registered users, there have to be at least 1,500 H sufferers amongst us?

The fact that 1 out of every 1,000 T sufferers also has H seems much more plausible to me.

 

50k goes into 8 Billion about 160k times. So if that statistic is correct there are 160K people with H. I am one of them but mine is mild.

 

Because 1 in 8 people have had tinnitus in the past, but much less than 1 in 8 people currently have the condition.

 

Sorry, that's not correct. The estimate is that 1 in 8 people have permanent tinnitus to some degree or another. Most aren't bothered by it. 1 in a 100 have problem tinnitus.
Almost everyone experiences temporary tinnitus at some point.

 

Thank you, I see that I messed up my zeros by poorly phrasing a Google question rather than inputting the math myself. The number I had was 50K in to 77 million.

 

I had this conversation with an Audiologist at my local Tinnitus Management Clinic last week. She said they are snowed under with referrals and I said why is it the last Tinnitus Support Group meeting I had there was only about 10 people, if that's the case?

She said lots of people just dont admit it to themselves and try to get on with it as best as they can. My brother develop T a year or so ago - drives him nuts but he's made of stronger stuff than me and I don't think he's even been to the doctors about it.

I've also met people at work; know people online on unrelated pages who have it and two or three on my friends list that have it and they just plod on. One on my friends list I met through You Tube who was in a bad way and now 10 years later, we hooked up again and he says he just gave up looking.

And of course there was myself up until October 2018 who had never looked at a Tinnitus page in nearly 15 years, before I became a gibbering wreck.

 

@Allan1967

I assure you Allen, that if your Brother's tinnitus was severe enough he would seek help. The same applies to what your Audiologist told you about her patients, that choose to get along with their tinnitus instead of complaining or seeking help. I promise you nothing could be further from the truth!

Tinnitus comes in many forms and intensities and no two people will experience it the same. If tinnitus becomes severe and intrusive enough, it can drive a person to want to cause their own demise. There are many thousands of people around the world that have tinnitus, it is not severe enough for them to seek help.

Michael

 

I think where my brother is concerned Michael he knows what I've been through and he's not in any rush to get help. It's been a feature in my family over the past 20 years, on and off so tinnitus and the distress it causes was not a surprise to him, if you see what I mean.

Obviously I can't tell how bad his is except he describes it as 'raging' at times, but he's a tough cookie, loud and outspoken in honest way which I think stops him from sinking but I hear through the grapevine [wives' gossip] that he has his moments. But as you say no two people experience the same.

Hope you are well today.

 

With respect to your Brother @Allan1967 I hope he never ever gets tinnitus the right way. I assure you, it doesn't matter how tough he is, he will not be able to withstand the unrelenting furore, that I know tinnitus can unleash on a person when it reaches severe levels and this is sustained. People have telephoned me in tears because they cannot cope with loud intrusive tinnitus.

I wish you well.
Michael

 

No you are the one who is not correct. Tinnitus is uncommon, especially chronic tinnitus. See this article: https://consumer.healthday.com/hear...s-experienced-ringing-in-the-ears-713127.html

 

We'll agree to differ - but you're wrong.

 

Interesting article and I will repeat what it said at the end of the article - that despite the recent failures of drug compounds there are enough reasons to be hopeful that a drug may be available in the near future.

Also, it’s already been shown that tinnitus can be pharmaceutically reduced/abolishes by lidocaine. If they knew why or could mimic a drug that can be orally administered without serious side effects you’ve got a drug for tinnitus!

 

It's the number #1 service related disability in the United States military.

A doioioioioioi

 

Zinc is not an emerging drug.
AM-101 doesn't work.
Stop trying to systemically alter the function of our nervous system.

None of these compounds are focused on regenerating damage, which is possible. So these things are all BS.

 

I've heard they typically get 10% disability which isn't much.

 

It costs over a Billion dollars (with B) every year for veterans alone, in the US.

Perhaps it's not much on an individual recipient basis, but it's a ton of money when compared to research funding (imagine just a tenth of that every year going to research).