Background:

The American Tinnitus Association (ATA) was founded in 1971 by Drs. Jack Vernon and Charles Unice in Portland, OR. The ATA’s mission, from that time to the present, focuses on providing education and support to patients bothered by tinnitus through the following initiatives:

• Funding of basic and applied research, which is managed by the ATA’s Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC).

• Advocacy in public policy initiatives that acknowledge societal impacts of tinnitus.

• Collaborations with other professionals with the goal of promoting awareness and preventive measures intended to minimize the burden associated with tinnitus.

To these ends, the ATA began funding tinnitus research in 1980. Projects funded by ATA in those early years included development of registries and educational materials for patients and providers. Over time, the SAC established and administered a grants program that supported the ATA’s wide-ranging Roadmap to a Cure. By 2010, the ATA’s grant program distributions exceeded $5 million across the 30 years of funding; in the 2024-2025 grant cycles alone, nearly $1 million was designated for research.

Goal:

This Research Topic offers a brief history of ATA’s growth and research support, as well as reviews, original articles and perspectives from grant awardees sharing their research findings and objectives. The diversity of topic areas, subject groups, and outcomes reported upon underscores both the heterogeneity of the tinnitus patient population as well as the notion that hearing-related professions still have much to learn about tinnitus mechanisms, measures, effects, and management. By drawing together these varied contributions, this Research Topic aims to advance our collective understanding and foster the development of more effective interventions for those affected by tinnitus.

Response from researchers to the ATA’s grant program continues to grow substantially, from an average of about 8 new grants per year from 2020-2023, to 25 submissions in 2024, to 38 during the 2025 cycle. The story of ATA-funded research, growing in both force and scope, is still being written.

Scope:

We welcome ATA-funded contributions that cover a broad range of themes within tinnitus research. The following (non-exhaustive) areas are of particular interest:

o Biological and neurophysiological mechanisms underlying tinnitus

o Development and validation of tinnitus assessment tools and outcome measures

o Advances in tinnitus management and treatment interventions

o Patient support, education, and quality of life outcomes

o Epidemiology, prevention, and public health approaches related to tinnitus

o Technological innovations in tinnitus monitoring, measurement, or intervention

o Interdisciplinary or collaborative projects that enhance understanding or address gaps in tinnitus research

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

ATA Research: from Roots to Roadmap