Stellate Ganglion Block as an Adjunctive Intervention for Chronic Subjective Tinnitus： Efficacy and Predictive Indicators / 中山大学学报(医学科学版)

ObjectiveTo explore the efficacy and predictive indicators of stellate ganglion block （SGB） as an adjunctive intervention for chronic subjective tinnitus and accumulate experience for the application of SGB in the clinical treatment of tinnitus. MethodsA retrospective review was conducted on the data of chronic subjective tinnitus patients who received SGB intervention， with unsatisfactory outcomes otherwise. Pure tone audiometry （PTA）， tinnitus loudness evaluation and Pittsburgh sleep quality index （PSQI） were used. The tinnitus handicap inventory （THI） scores were compared before and after SGB intervention. Correlation analysis and linear regression equations were employed to identify the potential indicators predicting the effectiveness of SGB intervention. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 24.0 software. ResultsBy April 2023， a total of 107 patients with chronic subjective tinnitus had undergone SGB intervention， including 67 male and 40 female， with a mean age of （45.32±11.40） years old and an average tinnitus history of （20.32±24.64） months ［16 （12~20）］. Only 7 patients （6.54%） quitted the intervention for personal reasons， which demonstrated good compliance with the intervention. No patients experienced adverse reactions such as infection at the injection site， hematoma， nerve injury， local anesthetic intoxication and so on， which revealed good safety. After SGB intervention， THI scores decreased to below 36 points in 77 patients and decrease by 10 points or more in 12 of the remaining patients， with a total effective rate of 89%. A paired sample t-test showed a significant difference in THI scores before and after SGB intervention （t=15.575， P<0.001）， indicating good improvement. Pearson correlation analysis suggested that pre-intervention THI scores and subjective tinnitus loudness were significantly positively correlated with the improvement level of THI scores （P<0.05）. Further stepwise linear regression analysis found that "pre-intervention THI scores" had statistical significance （P<0.001）， with a regression coefficient of 0.308， predicting a 17.4% improvement level in THI scores. ConclusionsDue to its good and safe short-term effects， SGB intervention can be used as a supplementary option for chronic subjective tinnitus when other interventions are not ideal， especially for patients with higher THI scores. However， further research is needed to clarify the long-term efficacy and underlying mechanisms， in order to establish a more solid theoretical basis for SGB intervention in the treatment of subjective tinnitus.

Correlation of Tinnitus Severity Index and Tinnitus Handicap Inventory with Hematological Parameters in Patients with Subjective Tinnitus

Abstract Introduction Tinnitus etiopathogenesis is still unclear and treatment options are controversial despite current advances in medicine. Objectives To analyze the correlation between patients' symptom scores, systemic inflammation, and trombosis biomarkers. Methods In this prospective study, we evaluated the degree of complaints of subjective tinnitus patients with the tinnitus severity index (TSI) and tinnitus handicap inventory (THI), and correlated these symptom scores with hematological parameters such as the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR), mean thrombocyte volume (MPV), and platelet distribution width (PDW). Results A total of 44 patients with subjective tinnitus, 25 (56.8%) men and 19 (43.2%) women, were included in this study. The mean age of the patients was 42.3 ± 14.8 years. When the correlation between TSI and NLR, PLR, PDW, and MPV values of the patients were analyzed, no statistically significant correlation was found between TSI, NLR, and PLR (p > 0.05). However, there was a statistically weak positive correlation between TSI, MPV, and PDW.(p < 0.05). When the correlation between THI and NLR, PLR, PDW, and MPV values of the patients were analyzed, no statistically significant correlation was found between THI, NLR, and PLR (p > 0.05). There was a statistically weak positive correlation between THI, MPV, and PDW (p < 0.05). Conclusion We were unable to detect any relationship between systemic inflammation markers (NLR and PLR) and symptom scores, but a weakly positive correlation was observed between thrombosis markers (MPV and PDW) and symptom scores, and as the subclinical thrombosis markers elevated, so did the symptom scores.

Multimodal magnetic resonance imaging of subjective tinnitus related mood disorder / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Subjective tinnitus refers to the subjective sound perception of patients in the absence of an external sound stimulus.Tinnitus patients are often accompanied by emotional disorders, such as depression and anxiety, which seriously affect the quality of life of patients.Therefore, understanding the mechanism underlying the occurrence of tinnitus emotional disorders can help relieve the pain of tinnitus.Tinnitus was considered a simple ear disease in the early stages, but with the progress of neuroimaging technology and the development of animal models, increasing attention has been given to the changes in the neural structure and function of tinnitus patients.As a powerful technique for in vivo investigation of neural activity in the brain, multimodal magnetic resonance has been widely used in the study of subjective tinnitus.By observing the changes of brain structure in subjective tinnitus patients, the neural mechanism of the occurrence and development of tinnitus has been explored.This article reviewed recent multimodal magnetic resonance imaging studies on the neuroimaging mechanisms of tinnitus with mood disorders, compared the differences in neural activity between subjective tinnitus patients and healthy people, and found that the limbic system, default mode network and other neural network abnormalities were closely related to the mood disorders of tinnitus.The application and development of multimodal magnetic resonance techniques in subjective tinnitus were also discussed to elucidate the neural mechanism of subjective tinnitus accompanied by mood disorders with the help of multimodal magnetic resonance techniques.

Clinical Study on Trigger Points Combined with Acupoints by Acupuncture for Subjective ;Tinnitus / 中国中医药信息杂志

Objective To assess the therapeutic efficacy of trigger points (TrPs) combined with acupoints by acupuncture for subjective tinnitus (ST);To discuss the correlation of TrPs acupuncture inactivation and the releasing of symptom. Methods Sixty patients with ST were randomly divided into trial group and control group, 30 cases in each group. Those in trial group were acupunctured by TrPs combined with acupoints, and those in control group received regular acupuncture treatment. The scores of tinnitus severity assessment were available for effect evaluation after 3 treatment course. The size and tenderness degree of TrPs contraction knots were checked, and TrPs local thermal infrared spectrum was compared by infrared camera. Results The post-treatment tinnitus severity scores had significant difference compared with pre-therapy in each group (P0.05). Conclusion TrPs combined with acupoints by acupuncture for ST patients are better than conventional acupoints in improving clinical symptoms. The deactivation of TrPs is closely related to tinnitus symptoms, therefore, temperature and tenderness of TrPs can be employed to assist in the diagnosis, or evaluated the tinnitus severity and therapeutic efficacy.