I have tinnitus and have seen quite a few "cures" for this ailment in supplemental oral medication. do any of these work? is there a cure for tinnitus

Usually not: Unfortunately, there is evidence that vitamins, melatonin, ginko biloba, zinc do not help tinnitus. Treating a correctable underlying cause for tinnitus (e.g. Eustachian tube problem) could stop it, but many cases of tinnitus have no curable or identifiable cause. There are treatments that can help symptoms, eg cognitive behavioral therapy, tinnitus retraining therapy, treating hearing loss.

Placebos work: The placebo effect is very powerful. Even a sugar pill leads to a 30% improvement in symptoms. Some patients do well with supplements, many do not. The goal of all tinnitus treatment is to make the tinnitus a neutral sound. If you don't care about it your brain will not pay attention to it and you won't "hear it.".

Getting there: Currently there is no "cure, " although some supplements have shown mixed results including lipoflavanoid, ginko biloba, etc. Tinnitus retraining is another type of cognitive treatment that may help. Masking is a helpful technique, which is basically learning to tune out the noises.