The Intakt Project in Germany Is Developing Systems to Treat Tinnitus

[Gb3]

So far, Fraunhofer researchers are aiming for three initial projects:

One of them being a tinnitus suppressor that uses electrical stimulation to mask the ringing sound and make it less intrusive.

Connected micro-implants could treat tinnitus and enable prosthetic movement

 

[EDDTEKK]

Could you find out how they want to place the chips? Can we ask if we can participate in the study? I am from Germany.

 

[Padraigh Griffin]

Amazing stuff but I can't help but think that Neuralink will be the dominant force in this area (including tinnitus) as the sheer amount of capital available to the company is practically unlimited.

It's great to see this tech moving forward. This is the cure. Everything else before it will be a treatment.

All imho of course

 

[Bruce NH USA]

This sounds interesting. How long would it take to get this to market, in your opinion? If it's successfully marketed in the EU, I wonder how long the FDA would drag their feet on getting this approved in the States...

 

[Gb3]

Could you find out how they want to place the chips? Can we ask if we can participate in the study? I am from Germany.

You'd prolly have a better chance of finding that out. I'm not German.

 

[Gb3]

Amazing stuff but I can't help but think that Neuralink will be the dominant force in this area (including tinnitus) as the sheer amount of capital available to the company is practically unlimited.

It's great to see this tech moving forward. This is the cure. Everything else before it will be a treatment.

All imho of course

I agree. The one problem with Neuralink is the FDA and the weird hatred for Elon.

 

[reggie green]

Could you find out how they want to place the chips? Can we ask if we can participate in the study? I am from Germany.

I am writing an email to them. What other questions can I ask?

 

[Gb3]

I am writing an email to them. What other questions can I ask?

How close are they to human clinical trials?

 

[EDDTEKK]

I found that this doctor is the contact person for tinnitus:

Prof. Dr. Klaus-Peter Hoffmann
Telefon 06897 / 9071-400
E-Mail: klaus-peter.hoffmann@ibmt.fraunhofer.de

 

[Sugar_Boy]

Someone tried it?

 

[EDDTEKK]

I wrote an email to that person but haven't received any feedback. I think he will not reply. Probably someone else could try as well?

 

[InNeedOfHelp]

A new generation of microimplants

Nice update. I'm excited. Bring on the implants!

 

[Nick47]

@InNeedOfHelp, interesting. Do you think this will help in the case of high frequency severe hearing loss? If it's extra cochlear and doesn't stimulate the auditory nerve, I struggle to see how, although maybe I misunderstand.

 

[DimLeb]

I read the part about tinnitus in that article and it indeed sounds promising. I would love to read about the science behind it or if they did any trials on the cochlea microchips.

 

[Nick47]

"An application has already been submitted to the BMBF for funding for a follow-up study. Hearing implant expert Olze is confident that both will work. But she cannot promise a quick solution for those affected. It will certainly take another ten years before such a complex micro-implant is ready for the market - provided the follow-up studies go as smoothly as the first two proof-of-concept studies. "Our patients are suffering a lot," emphasises Heidi Olze, "and of course we very much hope that we can bring our project to a successful conclusion."​

Written in August 2021.

 

[InNeedOfHelp]

@InNeedOfHelp, interesting. Do you think this will help in the case of high frequency severe hearing loss? If it's extra cochlear and doesn't stimulate the auditory nerve, I struggle to see how, although maybe I misunderstand.

I don't know. I did read the first trial results of 6 patients. Only 2 were helped and 1 worsened.

But the first trial was to determine the parameters and settings so I guess it makes sense.

 

[BadNeighbors]

Ignoring the work needed develop these devices, does stimulating the cochlea work to reduce tinnitus even temporarily?

It'd be amazing if we were at a point where someone actually knows how to reduce tinnitus, but they just need to create a small device that can do the necessary work.

 

[Nick47]

does stimulating the cochlea work to reduce tinnitus even temporarily?

@BadNeighbors, yes, there have been a few studies of this nature in humans. Plus Cochlear Implants often reduce tinnitus. This is where the idea came from.

 

[UKBloke]

Ignoring the work needed develop these devices, does stimulating the cochlea work to reduce tinnitus even temporarily?

It'd be amazing if we were at a point where someone actually knows how to reduce tinnitus, but they just need to create a small device that can do the necessary work.

I think some of the work Hamid Djalilian is involved in has shown this to be the case, however, it clearly needs refinement as there were weird side-effects in some patients.

 

[Jonno02]

Ignoring the work needed develop these devices, does stimulating the cochlea work to reduce tinnitus even temporarily?

Would this be the mechanism behind residual inhibition after you play the same frequency as your tinnitus? Or am I way off base?

 

[Nick47]

Or am I way off base?

@Jonno02, not way off at all. This method just gets a better response as it's inside the ear, near the cochlea. Both increase electrical transmission down the auditory nerve.

 

[duesseldorf]

So interesting. I'm from Germany as well so I will closely follow the progress.

 

[Nick47]

There is a new paper on stimulation parameters for this device, however not publicly accessible.

→ Evaluation of biocompatibility and stimulation parameters of implantable electrode arrays for tinnitus suppression – project INTAKT

 

[Fields]

I hadn't heard of this before. It could be of interest since I'm close to Germany.

It's a shame that there hasn't been any recent news (the article above is dated May 2023).

 

[Nick47]

It's a shame that there hasn't been any recent news (the article above is dated May 2023).

In August 2021, the lead researcher said 10 years.