Clinical trial: Brain Imaging of Tinnitus (NCT00359931)

Eligibility criteria:
-  INCLUSION CRITERIA:

        Plus Tinnitus Plus Hearing loss subjects.

          -  Adults, between the ages of 30 to 65 years.

          -  Are able to hear and perceive sounds used in the experiment in the range 250 Hz to 2
             KHz and have high-frequency sensorineural hearing loss beginning no lower than 2 KHz.

          -  In good health and not currently taking certain medications regularly (e.g.
             antidepressants, antiseizure medications, antipsychotics, etc.).

          -  Experience tinnitus daily.

          -  Have had non-pulsatile tinnitus for at least 1 year.

          -  Have bilateral or bilateral with unilateral dominance tinnitus.

        Minus Tinnitus Plus Hearing loss subjects.

          -  Adults, between the ages of 30 to 65 years.

          -  Are able to hear and perceive sounds used in the experiment in the range 250 Hz to 2
             KHz and have high-frequency sensorineural hearing loss beginning no lower than 2 KHz.

          -  In good health and not currently taking certain medications regularly (e.g.
             antidepressants, antiseizure medications, antipsychotics, etc.).

          -  Have never or rarely (i.e. transient episodes experienced by virtually everyone)
             experienced tinnitus.

        Minus Tinnitus Minus Hearing loss subjects or normal volunteers.

          -  Adults, between the ages of 30 to 65 years.

          -  Have normal hearing.

          -  In good health and not currently taking certain medications regularly (e.g.
             antidepressants, antiseizure medications, antipsychotics, etc.).

        EXCLUSION CRITERIA:

          -  Subjects who have pacemakers, aneurysm clips, metallic prostheses or shrapnel
             fragments.

          -  Subjects incapable of giving informed consent.

          -  Subjects with a positive pregnancy test.

          -  Children below the age of 18 years.

          -  Subjects with hyperacusis or misophonia (hyper-sensitivity to loud noises).

          -  Subjects with mood disturbances such as depression or anxiety.

          -  Subjects with a history of temporomandibular joint problems or who present symptoms of
             pain and tenderness of the temporomandibular joint on examination.

        Subjects may be excluded for the following reasons that may cause difficulty with
        interpretation of the imaging data:

          -  Subjects with mental or physical illnesses, other than tinnitus that may cause
             problems with participation in the study.

          -  Subjects with current uncontrolled hypertension, or significant past history of
             cardiovascular disease and diabetes melitus.

          -  Subjects with a history of head trauma with loss of consciousness, epilepsy, seizures,
             a history of chemotherapy (neurotoxic or ototoxic) and other medical conditions that
             may alter cerebral functioning.

          -  Subjects who are taking or have a history of taking recreational drugs or alcoholism.

          -  Subjects with unilateral or asymmetrical hearing loss who have not had (or cannot
             provide documentation of) comprehensive neuro-otologic workup will be excluded.
No condition on gender to be admitted to the trial.
No healthy subjects accepted to join the trial.
Subject must be at least 30 Years old.
Subject must be at most 65 Years

Patient description (medical language): A 47-year-old woman comes to the clinic complaining of dizziness.  She also has occasional nausea and ringing in her right ear.  The patient also has difficulty hearing while holding her phone to the left ear, although hearing in her right ear is normal.  The dizziness improves spontaneously, and she feels fine between episodes.  Past medical history is notable for hypothyroidism and low vit D level, for which she is using Levothyroxine and Vit D pearl.  She does not use tobacco or drink alcohol. Physical examination shows sensorineural hearing loss in the left ear. She has only one-man sexual partner and menopaused 2 years ago.

Patient description (patient's own words): The other day, I had to go to the clinic due to severe dizziness. I'm 47 years old, and I've been suffering from nausea and ringing in my right ear. I also have difficulty hearing in my left ear while I hold my phone, even if my hearing in my right ear is normal. The dizziness just gets me all of a sudden but I don't have any symptoms in between 2 episodes. I suffer from hypothyroidism and low vitamin D levels. So I take Levothyrox and vitamin D pearl. I don't smoke or drink. They conducted a physical exam and said I had hearing loss in my left ear. My only partner is my husband, and I'm menopause for 2 years now.

Does the patient match the trial criteria? Entailment