Ambroxol for Treating Tinnitus / Hyperacusis

[beeeep]

Has someone here noticed any difference to their tinnitus when taking Ambroxol? It's the active ingredient of several cough medicines and seems to have pretty few side effects and is pretty cheap.

Actually, it's available without prescription in Germany (and probably everywhere else).

There is a patent mentioning that it "could" help against tinnitus (which does of course not mean anything).

And there is "someone on the internet" claiming that he noticed a difference while taking it and probably getting a higher than usual dose (which is of course an even weaker evidence, there's always someone on the internet claiming something...).

However, since there are probably some people here that took it as expectorant during a cough, I wonder if they noticed any difference in their tinnitus.

 

[Atlantis]

Where can you buy this? What's the proposed mechanism of action?

 

[linearb]

I bought some on eBay, I'll let you know if it does anything in 4-6 weeks :-p

 

[beeeep]

What's the proposed mechanism of action?

The patent states that it can be compared to Lidocaine, which seems to be useful (there's a discussion in the treatments section about it) but can cause quite severe side effects, whereas Ambroxol seems to be quite harmless.

The proposed mechanism of action is, according to the patent:

Surprisingly, ambroxol exhibits very good activity in the treatment of otological disorders, particularly tinnitus, this activity being based among other things on the blockade of over-activated voltage-dependent sodium channels. At a pharmaceutically effective dose there are no central nervous and cardiovascular side effects. Surprisingly ambroxol also exhibits very good effects as a calcium channel blocker and as an AMPA receptor antagonist, which complement the treatment of tinnitus in an ideal manner.
[...]
It is known from the prior art that individual Is sodium channel blockers may have a positive effect on tinnitus (such as e.g.
lidocaine, Hartigh et al. 1993, Clin. Pharm. and Ther. 54, 415-420).
[...]
Antagonists of ionotropic glutamate receptors, particularly of AMPA
(a-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionate) receptors, have been particularly recommended for the treatment of tinnitus (Shulman 1997, Int.
Tin. J 3, 77-93), but have not yet achieved recognition for this indication.

————

Where can you buy this?

Ambroxol is the active ingredient in many cough medicines.

According to Wikipedia, some brand names are:

Mucosolvan, Mucobrox, Mucol, Lasolvan, Mucoangin, Surbronc, Ambolar, and Lysopain

A quick search for Germany found an online pharmacy selling generic brand Ambroxol 75mg x 20 pills for around €2 EUR. For the UK, I found the same stuff for £2 GBP...

However, it seems to be hard to find this stuff in the US. After quite some searching, I found one page selling this stuff. For $40 USD you get 100 pills, 30mg each. Not sure why this stuff isn't sold in the US.

 

[Twitch]

I couldn't find anything in the UK with the active ingredient Ambroxol. Can you link which product(s) you found and the one at £2 GBP?

 

[linearb]

I got some of this stuff on eBay. Seems trivially easy to source, it's a common OTC drug in large parts of the world.

 

[undecided]

Yeah, Ambroxol is about as common as dirt.

If it did anything for tinnitus (or Parkinson's or diarrhea), I'm sure we'd know it by now.

 

[Cesar Franco]

Patent: Ambroxol for Treating Tinnitus

 

[ajc]

Thinking of trying this since it's so easily available.

Anybody getting good results?

 

[Lukee]

Thinking of trying this since it's so easily available.

Anybody getting good results?

I started taking this a few days ago after getting recommended it for ETD type issues.

I feel like I have fluid in my ears and it was suggested it might help as a mucolytic agent and anti-inflammatory. I can tell you that without a doubt it makes a difference in some of my symptoms and it's noticeable in about 1-2 hours. As it wears off, I feel the symptoms get worse again. I can't say for sure but it's possible it has a bit of an effect on my tinnitus though mine is relatively mild and not my main concern.

I would imagine that tinnitus caused by inflammation or ETD could possibly be helped by Ambroxol.

I am taking 30 mg twice a day but not sure if I should up the dosage to 3x a day.

 

[FGG]

I started taking this a few days ago after getting recommended it for ETD type issues.

I feel like I have fluid in my ears and it was suggested it might help as a mucolytic agent and anti-inflammatory. I can tell you that without a doubt it makes a difference in some of my symptoms and it's noticeable in about 1-2 hours. As it wears off, I feel the symptoms get worse again. I can't say for sure but it's possible it has a bit of an effect on my tinnitus though mine is relatively mild and not my main concern.

I would imagine that tinnitus caused by inflammation or ETD could possibly be helped by Ambroxol.

I am taking 30 mg twice a day but not sure if I should up the dosage to 3x a day.

It seems good for helping to clear out the Eustachian tube and is great for facial noxacusis pain, too (works on the same sodium and calcium channels as Lidocaine).

Thinking of trying this since it's so easily available.

Anybody getting good results?

It doesn't penetrate the BBB or presumably the blood cochlear layer well but if you had some middle ear stuff contributing to your tinnitus, it might help. Otherwise, my guess is it won't do much.

 

[VeryUnfortunate]

I wanted to bump this thread because I have seen some positive reports of Ambroxol among some hyperacusis users, particularly sufferers with Trigeminal Neuralgia symptoms.

Has anyone tried Ambroxol recently? How was it and what dosage?

 

[Hottopic29]

Ambroxol does help. I take it.

 

[Amv]

Ambroxol is a mucolytic and antioxidant. If you have ETD, sinus or any mucus buildup, it is a good drug to make the mucus more liquid and easier to clean the respiratory airways.

 

[Fightthearmy]

Ambroxol does help. I take it.

At what dosage?

The strongest dose which can be acquired in a local pharmacy without a prescription seems to be the 6mg/ml found in cold medicines and cough suppressants. Is this way too low?

 

[StoneInFocus]

I wanted to bump this thread because I have seen some positive reports of Ambroxol among some hyperacusis users, particularly sufferers with Trigeminal Neuralgia symptoms.

Has anyone tried Ambroxol recently? How was it and what dosage?

I have taken about 2/3 20mg orodispersible tablets per day for two weeks straight

Didn't notice any effect, but couldn't hurt to try.

 

[StoneInFocus]

This study investigates the neuroprotective and anti-nociceptive effects of Ambroxol in oxaliplatin induced neuropathic pain in rats.

Pharmacological co-treatments with ambroxol (1000 mg/kg, p.o.), carbamazepine (100 mg/kg, p.o.) and combination of ambroxol with pregabalin (10 mg/kg, p.o.) for 21 days (one hour prior to oxaliplatin injection), significantly ameliorate the oxaliplatin induced neuropathic pain by attenuating thermal heat hyperalgesia, tail-cold hyperalgesia and cold allodynia along with decreasing oxidative stress markers and inflammatory mediators.

Too bad 1000 mg/kg in rats equates to about 161 mg/kg for humans, which would far exceed normal Ambroxol doses. Interestingly enough 1000 mg/kg Ambroxol has a similar effect to 100 mg/kg Carbamazepine in treating Oxaliplatin induced paw thermal hyperalgesia and tail cold hyperalgesia. 100 mg/kg equates to 16.1 mg/kg Carbamazepine, which is about 1100 mg in humans, which is a high but not unusual dose.

 

[Nick47]

Ambroxol does help. I take it.

Does Ambroxol lower the tinnitus?

 

[Vadimus]

I just took 3 tablets of 30 mg Ambroxol. It seems to make my tinnitus temporarily worse.

 

[StoneInFocus]

Patent: Ambroxol for Treating Tinnitus

From the patent:

Surprisingly ambroxol also exhibits very good effects as a calcium channel io blocker and as an AMPA receptor antagonist, which complement the treatment of tinnitus in an ideal manner... It is also preferred to use ambroxol or one of the pharmacologically acceptable salts thereof as described above, the ambroxol being used in a daily dosage of 30 mg to 4000 mg, preferably 150 mg to 3000 mg, most preferably 350 mg to 2500 mg, most preferably 500 mg to 2000 mg...

The invention also relates to the use of ambroxol or one of the pharmacologically acceptable salts thereof in combination with one or more other active substances, io selected from the group consisting of analgesics, antidepressants, calcium channel antagonists, glutamate receptor antagonists, particularly glutamate receptor antagonists of the NMDA or AMPA sub-type, CGRP agonists, CGRP antagonists, anticonvulsants of the baclofen type, osmoregulators, for example mannitol, glycerol or frusemide, sodium channel blockers, anticonvulsants, for example barbiturates or is benzodiazepines, antiarrhythmics and neuroprotectives.

 

[StoneInFocus]

Ambroxol, the cough expectorant with neuroprotective effects

Ambroxol for neuropathic pain: hiding in plain sight?

 

[Nick47]

@StoneInFocus, I would give Ambroxol a go, BUT I cannot find any in the UK.

 

[Cmspgran]

I gave Ambroxol a go. It did nothing for my tinnitus. You can easily buy it on German online pharmacy websites.

 

[StoneInFocus]

I gave Ambroxol a go. It did nothing for my tinnitus. You can easily buy it on German online pharmacy websites.

What dosage did you use? Ambroxol doesn't penetrate the brain in regular doses, so in that case, it probably won't work for tinnitus.

In this study, the investigators gave patients 1.26 grams of Ambroxol per day, and this was well tolerated for six months.

If you seriously want to try Ambroxol for tinnitus, I would use at least 1000 mg per day.

 

[Vadimus]

A couple days ago I took 10 Ambroxol tablets of 30m g (300 mg total) at a time, 3 times a day (900 mg total for the day). I didn't feel any change in my tinnitus. There were no side effects either.

 

[Theady]

I tested with one pill last night and two this morning. I woke up with a spike in my tinnitus, and my hyperacusis hasn't changed. I will stop, just in case.

 

[StoneInFocus]

I tested with one pill last night and two this morning. I woke up with a spike in my tinnitus, and my hyperacusis hasn't changed. I will stop, just in case.

It's impossible to get a tinnitus spike with one pill.

A couple days ago I took 10 Ambroxol tablets of 30m g (300 mg total) at a time, 3 times a day (900 mg total for the day). I didn't feel any change in my tinnitus. There were no side effects either.

You have to take it for much longer than that in order to notice possible effects.