IGF1 (Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1) as SSHL Salvage Treatment

Hi All,
I found this site quite informative so I thought I would give something back. I've been looking at the literature recently about SSHL, to me all the possible drug candidates look inconclusive (eg AM101) and Gene Therapy is way off in terms of development.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26739948
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0385814615300043
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378595515000982

Latest study
http://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1741-7015-8-76

I know personally body builders will use HGH for very fast amazing recoveries for tissue, HGH will also affect nerve regeneration too it seems. So in my searching I've come across these which I thought was interesting, nothing on this board on HGH (Human Growth Hormone) or IGF1 (Insulin-like growth factor 1), so it might be interesting to some.

I will post some updates as time goes on however I will looking to source HGH or IGF1 locally in attempt to restore some hearing (paper states a moderate -10dB gain) and lessen my T. Since my damage was done not that long ago there might be a window still but unknown. HGH can be sourced though anti-aging clinics (talk to a body builder), leads to production of IGF1. Drug delivery will be an injection into the arm (inTratympanic too scary for me), still working out dosage regime. From the paper dosage is low and one injection, so I thinking one unit per week for a month(?) Subject to change, half life seems 24hrs but nerve regeneration is slow, so might be enough to get the process started (?) Still looking into it.

its a gamble to seems to be worth it at this stage, still doing my research.

earlier study on rats (2013)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304394013010811
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1044743113000286
IGF1 for protecting in SSHL (yeah I know not really useful but interesting)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1044743113000286

Medical team website
http://www.med.kyoto-u.ac.jp/en/organization-staff/research/doctoral_course/r-055/

 

Old paper RE: Mecasermin

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19198769

'Other applications that have either been considered or are undergoing clinical trial are based on the ubiquitous tissue-building properties of IGF-I and include chronic liver disease, cystic fibrosis, wound healing, AIDS muscle wasting, burns, osteoporosis, Crohn's disease, anorexia nervosa, Werner syndrome, X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency, Alzheimer's disease, muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, hearing loss prevention, spinal cord injury, cardiovascular protection, and prevention of retinopathy of prematurity."

 

Hope it works.

 

Perhaps it is worthwhile to research whether it can pass through the eardrum given enough time. This way you can put some drops in your ear and lay on your side. One of the papers mentions topical application.

 

Its does in the paper, in my case, I will know soon. Its a long shot but worth a try with my recent damage.

Delivery method is problematic when it comes to the inner ear. Thought about topical but given the structure of the ear drum and cochlea, I very much doubt it will work. Topical when applied to Cochlea, still piercing ear drum. Half life of Mecasermin is 20min so drops in ear wont work.

My method will be a subcutaneous injections of IGF-lr3, this is a peptide polymer. Half life of Mecasermin and "naked" IGF1 is less than 20min, IGF1-lr3 half life is 24hrs. My treatment will consists stacking HGH and IGF1, alternate days, 0.1ml injections (5 days on 2 days off) for 10weeks.

I'm well in the process of sourcing, hopefully get it next week. Its a legal mind feild, much easier to get methamphetamine and opiates than this peptides for treatment of injury....

 

OK this a dead thread so will turn it for a diary for myself.

Got prescriptions and drugs delivered, talking with the doctor that specialises in sports injuries and treatment with peptide, recommend CJC 1295 as well. This is a synthetic HGH /IGF1 growth hormone, suppose to really boost IGF1 levels.

So treatment regime;

• 1mg/ml IGF-1 LR3, 0.2ml injections Monday to Friday
• 2mg/ml CJC1295, 0.2ml injections daily
• 3ui Genotropin per injection (HGH) 2 injections per week, single use syringe.
• Injection just before bed to boost the body’s natural healing time and highest levels of IGF1

Notes after 5 days use
Genotropin and IGF1 easy to inject, CJC 1295 on the other hand is painful every time. Also it really gets your heart racing, I turn red like I just ran a marathon. I would not recommend it to anyone with a weak heart. Now I inject IGF1 or HGH before CJC, this CJC side effect basically mixes the blood thoroughly. Injecting HGH for the first time was weird, it felt like my sinuses were really opening up along the my dysfunctional Eustachian Tube, which is good. No immediate effects with IGF1 injections.

Injecting CJC for the second time, my “ear fullness” that I had since getting sudden hearing loss is slowly going away. I went on my daily walk after day 5, usually the ear fullness sensation would spike after 30min, but did not return since starting treatment. Its still there but now fading.

My hearing distortions (moderate hyperacusis) is fading. Hearing is still not ideal but better than it was. Certain frequencies that would stand out walking in the city are more normalized.

Hearing, the higher pitches I lost seems to be coming back (?) A outside hissing water pipe that I was deaf to I can hear moderately now.

Tinnitus, the volume is slightly less or same but the duration of peak volume has decreased quite a bit. It will settle down by the time I go to bed, previously it would sometimes go all night or till 3am. On a side note, usually excercise will spike Tinnitus but injecting CJC does not affect Tinnitus, I was sure Tinnitus would spike with extra blood flow but it doesn't for some reason.

So good start, I will continue with these drugs for 8 weeks to be sure. Will post up observations as I go ,

 

These results are encouraging. Thank you for posting.

 

No problem, happy to help this community.

But to be clear this treatment is for sudden hearing loss and recent suffers, not chronic suffers and not Tinnitus, though both are interrelated.

In my case I suspect a vascular issue, hence the HGH on the side. another side note, sometimes I would get really bad leg cramps in the morning, I had one this morning, it started then went away really quickly. I think this mixture is increasing the size of the veins (noted by bodybuilders https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vascularity) and generaly feels like I have better blood flow.

 

Understood.
Many folks with T have hearing loss too (sometimes hidden), so this may be useful to them.

 

^I think so too, yesterday highlighted that for me.

Day6-8 of Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSHL) treatment
During day 6 as the drugs thin out of my system (IFG1-lr3 has a 24hr half life), I took a long walk that day to test ear fullness effect which was ok, however Tinnitus (both ears) and ear swelling started coming back at night. That night (day6) it was HGH and CJC injection, next day tinnitus was loud and constant, also hearing seemed to be worse. Next night (day7) I injected IGF1 and CJC, drugs made me heart race as per usual but can feel increased blood flow / pressure in the ears. Woke up next morning (day8) tinnitus is low and hearing is better (back to where it was day5).

So it seem the key ingredient as suspected is IGF1, also I think I need to stay somewhat inactive and low stress of course. Also I cannot miss IGF1 injections, I will have to swap out CJC for HGH.

 

Interesting stuff.

I've been researching PEDs lately and was wondering whether peptides and other PEDs could possibly help with hearing disorders. Personally I experience an insane reduction in my chronic tinnitus symptoms whenever I go through a course of oral corticosteroids, so I wonder what effect something like HGH/IGF or other similar drugs would have.

Only problem is that these medications are ridiculously expensive here. There are plenty of anti-aging clinics, and online pharmacies that will prescribe you these medications but the cost is ridiculous. I've also been looking into BCP 157 and TB 500 which are promoted for their healing and anti-inflammatory properties.

How long ago did you experience hearing loss?

 

Not sure about traditional steroids, I know cortico steroids are good as vascular dilators. They use prednisolone for Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSHL) as first line (and only) treatment within a two-week window. I was on a high dose (50mg per day) after 2-3months of injury, no effect on me.

Brother is a body builder and also has Tinnitus, has used PEDs for many years, Tinnitus unaffected. I think in your case it’s a blood flow/ vascular issue into the ear, either causing “blood hammer” or some kind of turbulence effect or over pressuring the ear, kinda like Pulsatile tinnitus. I suspect that injury reconfigured the blood vessel causing T, still looking into this and unsure MRI with a radiotracer has the resolution to pick up blood flow anomalies. I have this also; I’m still looking into these effects. That’s what the HGH is for, its known to fix vascular issues.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11755292

sidenote: I requested a test for Perilymphatic fistula (small tear in Cochlea) come up negative.

Only seen IGF1 for regeneration of nerve cells. Yeah cost is stupidly high, but 2month treatment I’m looking at $2K, may extend to 3. Will claim it off tax / healthfund. Sidenote: IGF1 is available in milk, cow IGF1 is exactly the same as human IGF1, I'm drinking a lot of milk to push IGF1 up further.

Hearing loss maybe 4months ago now. Sidenote: using my computer and headphones, I calculated my hearing loss to be around 20% last month, today its 10%. Tinnuitus is still there and as well as high range loss but its sound is getting clearer.

 

Interesting stuff...following

 

Day 13

Took 2 days off from treatment (5days on 2 days off), this is first weekend off, wanted to gain ground quickly to start with. There is a point where the body becomes tolerate to large doses of IGF1, so trying to keep the window of efficacy open as long as possible, from what I read that's 6 weeks (?).

I was dreading going off the drugs but seems the gains I made are here to stay. So far hearing has improved, it’s still off but quite a bit clearer now. High frequencies are soft but actually there now.

Tinnitus on the other hard has not really changed as much, seems to fluctuate like it did before, especially after lifting heavy items it will peak. To me it seems that Tinnitus and hearing loss are separate disorders. If dead or damaged hairs in the cochlea are the culprit of Tinnitus, then I would expect that Tinnitus will be reduced as much as my hearing loss has been reduced but it’s just not the case. I still think its a vascular issue causing water hammer in the ear that is Tinnitus.

On the other hand Hyperacusis has been reduced significantly, still there but nowhere near as bad. Which makes sense, a damaged hair would give damaged signal.

 

Really encouraging XDR. How is your ability to understand speech in background noise, and has you seen any changes with that?

 

Its ok but still way off. I went to a crowded shopping mall and felt like I made little progress. Still way off calling it a treatment. When its not that noisy speech seems better, I was not really able to understand my wife with my damaged hear when I first got SSHL. Now I can understand but still is faint, so there is progress.

Week3
Felt I have gone backwards after skipping two days, has taken a week for my ear to stabilize again. Seems that once "ear fullness" felling pops up, then my hearing drops off and Hyperacusis comes back. Tinnitus will fluctuate depending on stress levels as Tinnitus does.

Speaking with my brother, I will continue treatment for 3 months at least before I decide on whether or not this treatment is effective.

side note, I have increase muscle mass, better skin. Not the results I was looking for but as side effects go, not a bad one!

 

Week4
Pace of gains has slowed, looks like I'm in the long haul. Went to a shopping center yesterday and I had trouble making out speech, depending on background noise.

On the other side however, it doesn't bother me as much. Despite the treatment not being as effective as I hoped, what has done given me something else. These drugs have improved my mood quite a bit, I was rather depressed about SSHL for a long time but now I feel better. Side effect is better mood overall, I feel a lot happier, way stronger and younger. Its hard to describe but my wife noticed I was a much better happier partner. My skin looks younger, I'm gaining a large amount of muscle mass without any work put in, my stomach fat is melting too. I probably gained about 4kg of muscle and loosing fat that I had for years. Mentally far more focused, more energy and things just dont upset me near as much.

SSHL took one thing but with this treatment will give you another...

Sidenote: I still think its a vascular issue. I had trouble sourcing HGH, so I missed quite a few dosages unfortunately.

 

Wait!? Igf1 how dafuq did you get that!? Those cost like 800 dollars a 1 mg

 

to supply go to an anti-aging clinic or anti-aging doctor. Then take that prescription to a compounding pharmacy, all legal and getting the real deal. Heard some horror stories with black market crap.

I get it for $400 for 1mg in 5mL. Its 10X more potent that HGH, so 0.2mL injections a day will last a month. So its not as expensive as I initially thought.

 

Week5
No change, tinnitus increased after I lifted some heavy stuff then died down. Then T increased when I was not drinking any water, drank water then it died down. If T is loud at night I lay on opposite side of the affected ear and it dies down quickly. Also on the morning sometimes T will cut out completely for a second, All effects of blood pressure.

More and more I'm thinking T is actually caused by enlarge blood vessel into the ear. Any changes in blood pressure will directly affect T. Also T masks hearing, so that in effect a hearing test shows a "hearing loss". But this result would be same as if someone blowing into your ear while doing a hearing a test, net result is "hearing loss".

Going to do this for another month to make sure also if I do have damaged hairs, they will be repaired. Then I will have to solve the blood vessel issue. One weed at a time.

 

When I was on vasodialators two weeks ago there was a few days when I had crazy low blood pressure.... 105/65. During those couple of days my T almost stopped. Of course I was also lightheaded and head-achy.

 

Week6
No difference

Thanks for this, starting to see a pattern here. People have reported T going away at high altitudes and Barometric chambers (therapy) then when back to normal pressure it will come back.

Now I need to come up with some idea how to measure vascular pressure in the ear and how to regulate. Would a restriction stint do the job, does such a thing exist?

 

What about trying medication against high blood pressure even though having normal values?! Have to talk with a doctor about this of course, but maybe worth a try, especially since this seems less risky to me than most of the anti-epileptic drugs.

 

Besides injections, it's also possible to buy IGF-1 in the form of a spray (I found it on amazon). I guess you could try spraying it inside your ears or into the Eustachian tube via the nose by holding the spray horizontally in your nose.

Since there is research evidence on the topical application of IGF-1 as a gel, spraying it could work as well.

 

What I did notice leading up to my SSHL is that I got bad nose bleeds. I never had nose bleeds in my life. So it seems it can be related as a vascular failure/damage of some sorts that lead up to SSHL and T.

That will be my next test, I'm getting a BP meter off my relative this week. I notice that after a shower in the morning T will spike and after lifting heavy stuff every time. Will start logging, will post in this thread. I notice at night I can change the pitch with my jaw if I put pressure on arteries.

In the paper they mention topical application but its a inter-tympanic injection then applying gel to the cochlea directly. Also the issue is concentration, when they did the injection is was 300uL of 10mg/mL directly onto the cochlea. Anything sold is far less than that. My injections are 200uL of 1mg/mL daily. I was not able to source anything stronger since it is dangerous at those levels.

As for the IGF1 on Amazon, might as well drink milk, Bovine IGF1 is the same as human IGF1. Again concentrations will not be sufficient. IGF1 can also be found in mothers breast milk, needed to control a child's growth.

http://scienceblogs.com/aetiology/2012/06/19/growth-hormones-in-milk-mythfact/

 

Pressure.

Vascular- My T sounded like a bird chirping for 1.5 years, in my right ear only. The whole time I had high blood pressure and pulsatile T in both ears. I finally got sleeping again with medications and a hearing aid that masks the bird noise. Pulsatile T of coarse gone, but being able to relax and sleep and masking the bird noise has reduced the Bird Noise dramatically, I believe high blood pressure in the ear was the problem.

Hormonal - Oxytocin Nasal Sprays have been reported to help reduce T, this may be marketing but it seems to make sense given the properties of oxytocin that it could help. I found some on Amazon so who knows but I bought two brands. I will update you if I notice any benefit. I've noticed there is a connection between the Nasal Passage and Hearing/Tinnitus, I think they are Innvervated together. When I had high blood pressure I also was breathing really heavily through my nose and it was "wheezing" and I shit you not the "wheezing" sounded identical to the "Bird Noise" and when I finaly started sleeping again and stopped wheezing through my nose the bird noise T also has almost completely gone away.


Off- Topic but... Good information is good information.

Cochlear - Cochlear Hydrops (increased pressure inside the inner ear (cause unknown)), this pressure causes "fluctuating" tinnitus as the pressure within the Cochlea fluctuates. You wont know if you have hydrops unless you get tested by an otologist, or if you unfortunately develop menieres. Its possible you have Cochlear Hydrops in your hearing chamber. The symptoms are fluctuating hearing loss and Tinnitus as well as vertigo (in most cases but not all) most people with hydrops like me never have such severe pressure that the chamber ruptures causing vertigo and so they never develope full menieres, but they have the precursor called Hydrops and they experience hearing loss and Tinnitus and don't know why. Good news is that you can stop the Hydrops, but they don't know how, probably through diet and exercise. A video on hydrops

Cochlear Hydrops

 

@XDR

did you try some medication in order to lower your blood pressure already? If so how was the effect on your T? I am thinking to ask my doctor to try this.. even though I don't really have an explanation why this could help T.. does blood pressure stand in relation to pressure in the ear? I thought it's more about your general blood and thus oxygen supply to the brain..?

@Rings-a-Bell

have you thought of trying to down-regulate your normal blood pressure, because apparently this seems to work for you..? Of course being tired and with less energy is also not really nice.. but it is not really dangerous to have a low blood pressure and I would definitely exchange that for having barely no T. Since you also got your T from acoustic trauma I figured I might try this. But have no idea if that is completely senseless?!

 

Week7
After lifting some heavy wheels and tyres, T and hearing loss came back with a vengeance. Still high even after a few days, havnt been drinking much water either, hence higher BP. Which is fine, supports my theory that T is not hair damage but blood hammer / vessel damage.

Not yet, as above raised it and T peaked.

My theory is that T is actually like water hammer which as been observed in the human body as blood hammer.
Same net result, high pitch constant noise, common in housing water pipes, if suddenly opening closing taps. Also for me amount of water I drink will affect T, resulting in changes in viscosity of blood thus blood pressure.

Thanks for that, keep us updated on the spray. I found that ventilin will help. Also people reported some nasal sprays working, one worked a bit for me, cant remember what I particularly needed, will update.

I'm in the same risk category, high blood pressure and mild sleep apnoia, so BP spikes at night sometimes. Nasal passage is linked, I've been diagnosed with Eustachian tube dysfunction and have "ear fullness". I suspect from the burst blood vessel now pumping in more blood but also taking up more space thus blocking my Eustachian tube.

I believe I have pulsatile T, I can hear my heartbeat in one ear loud and clear if I sleep on it.

 

Yeah Pulsatile is not a bid deal, unless it never stops. It's related to your heart which although "involuntary" is actually semi-voluntary, in other words you can control your heart and hence your can control pulsatile T.

The Oxytocin Spray makes me feel like I don't need anything, I just spray it and then sit there feeling warm with no desire to move lol. My T seems slightly quieter and less intense, I will continue to update here.

I also have been diagnosed with Eustacian Tube dysfunction and given steroid nasal spray.. You might have Hydrops, all the fluctuations in your T and hearing sounds like Hydrops symtoms, and drinking water effecting it makes sense too.

How does the Ventilin help your T? increased oxygen into the blood? lower Blood Pressure?

 

Wrong thread. Update about it here instead:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/the-love-hormone-may-quiet-tinnitus.17618/