The efficacy of treatments for depression used in the management of tinnitus

Chronic Primary Tinnitus: A Management Dilemma

Tinnitus often described as sound in the ear in absence of any external stimulus. It poses a challenge to the psychological and mental wellbeing of the patient and professional unsatisfaction to the clinician. The patient often an old aged individual usually approaches the outpatient department with various sounds in the ear, making him feel ill or unable to have a sound sleep. The middle-aged patient often complains of professional incapability and lack of concentration due to tinnitus. Despite vast academic research and advances, the efficiency of available treatment is debatable, often compelling the clinician to convey the message that “you may have to learn to live with it”. In the present overview of reviews, we tend to look into the management of tinnitus and present a comprehensive outlook of various evidence-based reviews from Cochrane and augmented with various studies from PubMed.

Antidepressants for patients with tinnitus

BACKGROUND

This is an update of a Cochrane review first published in The Cochrane Library in Issue 4, 2006 and previously updated in 2009.Tinnitus is described as the perception of sound or noise in the absence of real acoustic stimulation. It has been compared with chronic pain, and may be associated with depression or depressive symptoms which can affect quality of life and the ability to work. Antidepressant drugs have been used to treat tinnitus in patients with and without depressive symptoms.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the effectiveness of antidepressants in the treatment of tinnitus and to ascertain whether any benefit is due to a direct tinnitus effect or a secondary effect due to treatment of concomitant depressive states.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Ear, Nose and Throat Disorders Group Trials Register; the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL); PubMed; EMBASE; PsycINFO; CINAHL; Web of Science; BIOSIS; ICTRP and additional sources for published and unpublished trials. The date of the most recent search was 5 January 2012.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled clinical studies of antidepressant drugs versus placebo in patients with tinnitus.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two authors critically appraised the retrieved studies and extracted data independently. Where necessary we contacted study authors for further information.

MAIN RESULTS

Six trials involving 610 patients were included. Trial quality was generally low. Four of the trials looked at the effect of tricyclic antidepressants on tinnitus, investigating 405 patients. One trial investigated the effect of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) in a group of 120 patients. One study investigated trazodone, an atypical antidepressant, versus placebo. Only the trial using the SSRI drug reached the highest quality standard. None of the other included trials met the highest quality standard, due to use of inadequate outcome measures, large drop-out rates or failure to separate the effects on tinnitus from the effects on symptoms of anxiety and depression. All the trials assessing tricyclic antidepressants suggested that there was a slight improvement in tinnitus but these effects may have been attributable to methodological bias. The trial that investigated the SSRI drug found no overall improvement in any of the validated outcome measures that were used in the study although there was possible benefit for a subgroup that received higher doses of the drug. This observation merits further investigation. In the trial investigating trazodone, the results showed an improvement in tinnitus intensity and in quality of life after treatment, but in neither case reached statistical significance. Reports of side effects including sedation, sexual dysfunction and dry mouth were common.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

There is as yet insufficient evidence to say that antidepressant drug therapy improves tinnitus.

Antidepressants for patients with tinnitus

BACKGROUND

Tinnitus is described as the perception of sound or noise in the absence of real acoustic stimulation. It has been compared with chronic pain, and may be associated with depression or depressive symptoms which can affect quality of life and the ability to work. Antidepressant drugs have been used to treat tinnitus in patients with and without depressive symptoms.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the effectiveness of antidepressants in the treatment of tinnitus and to ascertain whether any benefit was due to a direct tinnitus effect or a secondary effect due to treatment of concomitant depressive states.

SEARCH STRATEGY

We searched the Cochrane Ear, Nose and Throat Disorders Group Trials Register, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) The Cochrane Library Issue 1, 2006); MEDLINE (January 1951 to 2006); EMBASE (1974 to 2006), CINAHL (to 2006), PSYCINFO (to 2006), LILACS (to 2006), and Cambridge Scientific Abstracts. The date of the most recent search was March 2006.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled clinical studies of antidepressant drugs versus placebo in patients with tinnitus.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

The studies retrieved were critically appraised and data extracted independently by two authors. Where necessary study authors were contacted for further information.

MAIN RESULTS

Five trials involving 525 patients were included. Four of these trials looked at the effect of tricyclic antidepressants on tinnitus, investigating 405 patients. One trial investigated the effect of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) in a group of 120 patients. No trials involving other antidepressant agents met the inclusion criteria. Only the trial using the SSRI drug met the highest quality standard. None of the other included trials met the highest quality standard, due to use of inadequate outcome measures, large drop out rates or failure to separate the effects on tinnitus from the effects on symptoms of anxiety and depression. All the trials assessing tricyclic antidepressants suggested that there was a slight improvement in tinnitus but these effects may have been attributable to methodological bias. The trial that investigated the SSRI drug found no overall improvement in any of the validated outcome measures that were used in the study although there was possible benefit for a subgroup that received higher doses of the drug. This observation merits further investigation. Reports of side effects including sedation, sexual dysfunction and dry mouth were common.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

There is insufficient evidence to say that antidepressant drug therapy improves tinnitus.