Red Light Therapy for Tinnitus: Scientific Evidence

Two low-level laser therapy (LLLT) wavelengths, 1064 and 810 nm, were tested against a placebo in a 2017 randomized controlled trial of tinnitus linked to jaw-joint problems in Turkey. 46 patients were split into a 1064 nm infrared laser group of 15, an 810 nm laser group of 16, and a placebo group of 15, each treated once per day for 10 days at a dose of 8 J/cm². The trial found a statistically significant drop in tinnitus ratings in both laser groups, with no meaningful change in the placebo group.

Whether combining two treatments works better than either alone was examined in a 2015 randomized controlled trial of tinnitus in Egypt. 30 patients were split into 3 equal groups receiving repeated magnetic brain stimulation, low-level laser therapy (LLLT) at 808 nm and 200 mW delivered to the affected ear and nearby acupressure points, or both together, across 10 sessions given every other day. Researchers found that only the combined treatment reduced tinnitus severity, an effect that lasted 4 weeks, while either treatment given alone showed no significant change.

Among 89 male factory workers with noise-related tinnitus, a 2013 randomized controlled trial in Iran tested low-level laser therapy (LLLT) against a placebo. The workers, averaging 41 years of age and exposed to workplace noise around 88 decibels, were given 650 nm light at 5 mW over the bone behind the ear for 20 minutes every other day across 20 sessions. Average tinnitus loudness fell from 6.07 to 4.51 in the laser group while barely changing on placebo, a statistically significant difference. The authors concluded that laser therapy relieved noise-related tinnitus, though the benefit faded by the 3-month follow-up. No side effects linked to the laser were seen during the study.

37 of 65 patients reported at least some improvement in their tinnitus after low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in a 2012 clinical trial in Qatar. Each patient with long-standing tinnitus had 650 nm light at 5 mW directed at the ears for 20 minutes per session across roughly 90 days. Relief reached 56.9% of patients overall, rated as mild in 33.8%, moderate in 16.9%, and full in 6.2%, while the rest saw no change. Side effects such as itching and small red spots were generally mild and cleared within a few days.

61 outpatients with tinnitus showed lower tinnitus ratings after a course of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in a 2011 clinical trial in Iran. The group, 38 men and 23 women, underwent 20 daily 20-minute sessions of 650 nm light at 5 mW aimed down the ear canal, and rated their tinnitus before and after treatment. The drop in tinnitus ratings was statistically significant and was largest in the youngest patients, the researchers reported.

This 2008 randomized controlled trial examined low-level laser therapy (LLLT) for chronic tinnitus in Italy. Over about 90 days, 46 patients had 650 nm light at 5 mW applied to the ear for 20 minutes a day. Tinnitus symptoms tended to ease following treatment in this trial.

Researchers in Turkey tested a low-power laser against a placebo for chronic tinnitus in a 2008 randomized controlled trial. 45 patients with tinnitus in 66 ears were assigned either 650 nm light at 5 mW sent through the ear canal for 15 minutes daily for 1 week, or an inactive placebo laser. Researchers found that the active group improved on the loudness, duration, and annoyance of tinnitus in up to 48.8%, 57.7%, and 55.5% of cases, respectively, while the placebo group showed no meaningful change.

Up to 58% of patients reported reduced tinnitus loudness in a 1997 clinical trial of low-power laser therapy in Japan. The trial treated 38 patients, 22 men and 16 women aged 22 to 78, by applying 830 nm light at 40 mW to the hearing part of the inner ear through the ear canal for 9 minutes per session, over 10 to 30 sessions. Loudness eased in up to 58% of patients and annoyance in up to 55%, while a smaller 26% reported their tinnitus lasting a shorter time, the researchers reported. No major complications were noted during treatment.

In 2025, a review from Saudi Arabia examined 9 studies of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) and photobiomodulation (PBM) for tinnitus and hearing loss. The included studies came from several countries and enrolled between 16 and 120 patients each, using wavelengths from 532 to 1064 nm. The review found the results mixed and too varied in method to combine into a single pooled estimate.

Comparing continuous and intermittent laser schedules against a sham, a 2025 single-blind randomized trial in South Korea tested photobiomodulation (PBM) for chronic tinnitus. 38 patients were divided into a group given 8 active 830 nm treatments over 4 weeks, a group given 4 active, then 4 sham treatments, and a control group given only sham. Some tinnitus severity and loudness measures appeared to improve in the group that received all active treatments, while gains in the mixed group faded once the sham sessions began.

Applying light at several points around the ear and under the tongue, a 2022 randomized controlled trial in Brazil tested photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) for tinnitus in people without hearing loss. 20 patients in 2 groups of 10, averaging 54 and 58 years of age, received 660 and 808 nm light at 80 to 120 mW, delivered to the eardrum, the bone behind the ear, the outer ear, and the veins under the tongue in sessions of 20 to 90 seconds, twice per week over 6 weeks. Tinnitus complaints eased significantly after treatment in both groups, but the difference between the groups was not statistically significant.

Researchers tested a new 830 nm low-level laser therapy (LLLT) device against a sham treatment in 38 adults with chronic tinnitus in a 2019 randomized controlled trial in Korea. The active group of 19 received 100 mW light through the eardrum for 20 minutes per day over 10 sessions, while the other 19 received a sham. Measures of tinnitus duration and loudness fell over the course of treatment in the active group, but not clearly at any single time point, the researchers reported. No adverse events were reported over the 2 weeks of treatment.

A 2017 clinical trial evaluated low-level laser therapy (LLLT) for subjective tinnitus in 20 adults in Iran. Patients received red 630 nm and infrared 808 nm light at 100 mW delivered to the ear canal and the bone behind the ear, in 20-minute sessions twice per week over 6 weeks, for a total of 120 J per ear each session. Patient-rated tinnitus loudness and severity appeared to improve, while most tests of ear function did not change, apart from one measure of hearing-nerve activity.

When researchers treated 120 patients who had tinnitus alongside nerve-related hearing loss, a 2014 randomized controlled trial in Iran compared low-level laser therapy (LLLT) with an identical inactive device. The active group had 650 nm light at 5 mW delivered along the ear canal for 20 minutes across 20 sessions. According to the trial, tinnitus severity improved significantly right after treatment in the laser group, but the difference from the placebo group was no longer significant 3 months later.

Published in 2003, this clinical trial tested low-level laser therapy (LLLT) at two wavelengths for tinnitus. 35 patients were treated with 635 and 830 nm light aimed at the hearing part of the inner ear, at 7.8 and 20 mW and a dose of 4 J/cm², 5 times per week over treatment periods of 14 to 35 days. The trial linked the laser treatment to partial relief of tinnitus.

120 patients with long-lasting tinnitus took part in a 2001 clinical trial in the Czech Republic that paired low-level laser therapy (LLLT) with the herbal extract ginkgo biloba. The 63 women and 57 men, averaging 53 years of age, each received 830 nm light directed at the bone behind the ear and the hearing part of the inner ear through the ear canal for 10 minutes per session across 10 sessions over 3 weeks, alongside daily ginkgo biloba. Tinnitus perception may have eased modestly on both hearing tests and patient ratings, though the improvement was only partial.

According to a 2022 systematic review from the United States, researchers set out to weigh how well photobiomodulation (PBM) works for tinnitus. The review pooled randomized controlled trials covering 507 patients, comparing PBM with other care or no treatment across studies that used wavelengths from 532 to 1064 nm. The authors concluded that the evidence remained conflicting and that small samples and differing methods made the effectiveness of PBM for tinnitus hard to establish.

Across 670 patients pooled from 11 randomized trials, a 2020 meta-analysis examined whether low-level laser therapy (LLLT) could reduce the severity of tinnitus. The included trials used 650, 810, and 830 nm light at power outputs from 5 to 100 mW, applied to the ear in sessions of 6 to 20 minutes, from 4 to 90 times per week. Combined scores on a questionnaire measuring how much tinnitus disrupted daily life differed by less than 3 points between laser and placebo, short of a meaningful difference. The authors concluded that the value of LLLT for tinnitus remained unclear, in part because the trials were small and varied widely.

In 2015, a randomized controlled trial in Iran tested low-level laser therapy (LLLT) for tinnitus linked to hearing loss. 66 patients completed 20 sessions of 650 nm light at 5 mW, each lasting 20 minutes and aimed at the hearing part of the inner ear, over about 28 days. The laser seemed to offer no meaningful benefit for tinnitus in this trial.

Comparing a low-level laser therapy (LLLT) group against a placebo device, a 2014 randomized controlled trial in Malaysia tested added laser treatment for tinnitus. All 48 patients took the drug betahistine twice daily, while one group was also treated with 650 nm light at 5 mW down the ear canal for 20 minutes a day over 10 weeks. Tinnitus loudness, annoyance, sleep, and concentration did not differ significantly between the laser and placebo groups. No patient's hearing worsened while using the device.

A placebo-controlled double-blind design assigned 47 patients with chronic tinnitus, 23 women and 24 men averaging 50 years of age, to active low-level laser therapy (LLLT) at 830 nm or an inactive laser in a 2013 trial in Austria. The laser delivered 450 mW and a total of 9.7 J through the ear canal for 30 minutes per session, 3 times per week over 4 weeks. Both the laser and placebo groups reported a moderate improvement at the end of treatment that reversed 6 weeks later, and neither change was statistically significant. The treatment appeared to offer no lasting benefit for tinnitus beyond placebo.

No meaningful reduction in tinnitus followed low-power laser treatment in a 1999 double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial in Denmark. 49 Patients with tinnitus received either an active 729 nm laser or an identical placebo, delivering around 40 mW and 29 J through the ear canal for 10 minutes per session over 15 days. The trial found no significant difference between the active laser and placebo groups. The authors suggested that a placebo effect most likely explained the improvements some patients felt.

1993 brought a clinical trial testing low-level laser therapy (LLLT) as a treatment for tinnitus. 28 patients received 632.8 and 904 nm light over the bone behind the ear for 10 minutes per session, 12 times per week, at power outputs of 9 to 20 mW. The treatment seemed to bring no clear reduction in tinnitus in this small trial.