Tinnitus, the perception of sounds not present externally, can significantly impair quality of life. Currently there are no clinically available objective measures to enable monitoring of tinnitus-related changes in brain activity. Our previous work demonstrated sensitivity of a non-invasive imaging technique called functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to changes in brain activity associated with tinnitus...
No actionable change yet; fNIRS biomarkers for tinnitus severity remain exploratory and are not validated for clinical use, but this work advances the search for an objective tinnitus measurement tool.
An objective, brain-based measure of tinnitus severity would fill a critical gap in diagnosis and treatment monitoring, since clinicians currently rely entirely on patient self-report.
- 01fNIRS (functional near-infrared spectroscopy) was used to identify potential brain-based biomarkers of tinnitus severity.
- 02The study examined whether biomarker patterns differ across distinct tinnitus subtypes.
- 03Published in Hearing Research (DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2026.109680).
- 04Objective tinnitus measurement is a major unmet need; self-report scales remain the current clinical standard.
- 05Findings may inform future subtype-specific tinnitus interventions if biomarkers are validated in larger studies.
fNIRS can detect biomarkers that reflect tinnitus severity.
studypartially supportedfNIRS biomarker patterns differ across distinct tinnitus subtypes.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42202545
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.heares.2026.109680.
- Journal
- Hearing Research
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- Adults with tinnitus, categorized into distinct tinnitus subtypes
- Intervention
- Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) measurement of cortical hemodynamic activity as a biomarker of tinnitus severity
Primary outcomes
fNIRS-derived biomarkers correlated with tinnitus severity; Differences in fNIRS biomarker profiles across tinnitus subtypes