Zinc in the management of tinnitus. Placebo-controlled trial.

What Was Tested

The paper reports a study of Zinc in the context of tinnitus, published as a randomized controlled trial.

Every week the patients stated the severity of tinnitus on a number scale from 0 to 10.

The levels of zinc and albumin in serum were determined both before and after treatment.

Who Took Part

The study group was 48 patients.

PubMed indexes the participants as adults, middle-aged adults and older adults, both men and women.

How the Study Was Run

In design terms this was a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study.

The patients were allocated by chance, so the Zinc group and the comparison group should start out alike.

Neither the patients nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Zinc, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

The comparison arm used a placebo, so changes seen with Zinc could be set against what happens without it.

What Was Measured

The levels of zinc and albumin in serum were determined both before and after treatment.

The subject headings attached to it are Audiometry, Pure-Tone, Serum Albumin, Speech Perception, Sulfates, Tinnitus, Zinc and Zinc Sulfate.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Zinc in 48 patients in people with tinnitus.

The publication is from 1991 (The Annals of otology, rhinology, and laryngology), a journal based in United States.

More context: the related Vitamin D, K2, Magnesium and Zinc library page, Tinnitus research.