Tinnitus could be a lucrative market for pharmaceutical companies: it is common, chronic and often crippling. Around 20% of the US and European population suffer from incessant ringing, buzzing, whistling and rustling in their ears at some point during their lives. Around a quarter of these seek medical help. But, until recently, doctors had little to offer, condemning many patients to insomnia, poor concentration and depression. In extreme cases, patients have committed suicide to escape the unrelenting noise.1However, studies published over the last year revolutionise our understanding of this disabling disease and raise the prospect of selective, effective treatments.