Effects of Kinesio Taping in Patients With Somatosensory Tinnitus

Effects of Kinesio Taping in Patients With Somatosensory Tinnitus: A Randomized Controlled Trial

There is no specific treatment that can cure somatosensory tinnitus and usually conservative physical therapy modalities are used in the literature. The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of kinesio taping applied to sternocleidomastoid, upper trapezium and levator scapulae muscles on the somatosensory tinnitus associated with neck complaints.

The study was designed as a prospective, randomized controlled and double blind trial.

Patients complaining of tinnitus were firstly subjected to otologic and audiologic evaluation by an otolaryngologist. Tinnitus characteristics, such as severity (Tinnitus handicap Index, tinnitus Visual Analog Scale- tinnitus VAS) , type (pulsatile/non-pulsatile), localization (unilateral/ bilateral) and the frequency (number of days with symptoms) were recorded. Patients were excluded if they had objective tinnitus, subjective tinnitus with hearing loss or Meniere's disease, vertigo, middle ear pathologies, intracranial pathologies, whiplash injury, previous cervical spinal surgery, pregnancy, infection, malignancy and if they received cervical physical rehabilitation program in the past 3 months.

Patients who diagnosed with somatosensory tinnitus and concomitant neck complaints (cervical-VAS score >2) at least 6 weeks were referred to physical medicine and rehabilitation outpatient clinic. Before the treatment, participants' demographics data including age, gender, Body-Mass Index (BMI) and cervical pain VAS score were recorded and physical examinations (cervical joint range of motion (cervical-ROM), cervical manual muscle testing (cervical-MMT) and myofascial trigger points for sternocleidomastoid, upper trapezium and levator scapulae muscles) were performed by one investigator.

Banding application performed for both groups once a week for four weeks. Tinnitus handicap index score, tinnitus VAS, ROM of the cervical joint, cervical MMT, cervical pain VAS, Neck Disability index score and myofascial trigger points of sternocleidomastoid, upper trapezium, levator scapula was evaluated in all subjects by the same investigator.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Subject has somatosensory tinnitus
• Subject has concomitant neck complaints (cervical-VAS score >2) at least 6 weeks
• Subject were referred to physical medicine and rehabilitation outpatient clinic

Exclusion Criteria:

• History of objective tinnitus
• History of subjective tinnitus with hearing loss
• History of Meniere's disease
• History of vertigo
• Hiistory of middle ear pathologies
• History of intracranial pathologies
• History of whiplash injury
• History of previous cervical spinal surgery
• History of infection or malignancy
• Pregnancy
• History of having received cervical physical rehabilitation program in the past 3 months