# Tinnitus Treatment with Targeted Electric Stimulation

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · 2020 · $115,631

## Abstract

Principal Investigator/Program Director (Last, first, middle): Zeng, Fan-Gang
ABSTRACT
The present administrative supplement proposes to examine the relationship between tinnitus and
cognition and to treat tinnitus in patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD).
Tinnitus is a hearing disorder that produces auditory perception without auditory stimulation and
affects 13-52% of the ARDR population. Using the same experimental protocols as in the active parent
award and building upon the preliminary work from a previous supplement, the proposed work will
achieve the following specific aims. Specific Aim 1 will investigate the relationship between tinnitus
and cognition in ADRD patients. We predict that tinnitus severity will be positively correlated with
cognitive decline. Specific Aim 2 will use electric brain stimulation to treat tinnitus in the same
patients. The main hypothesis is that, compared with typical non-ADRD subjects, the ADRD patients
would require different electric stimulation parameters for optimal tinnitus suppression. We predict that
dynamic brain electric stimulation will be more effective than steady-state ear electric stimulation in
suppressing tinnitus in ADRD subjects. Tinnitus characterization may serve as a biomarker for
monitoring the onset and progression of ADRD, while tinnitus suppression may delay or reduce
cognitive decline and development of ADRD.
Research Strategy

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10121063
- **Project number:** 3R01DC015587-04S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Fan-Gang Zeng
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $115,631
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2016-08-16 → 2021-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10121063

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10121063, Tinnitus Treatment with Targeted Electric Stimulation (3R01DC015587-04S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10121063. Licensed CC0.

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