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This research investigates the application of machine learning to improve the diagnosis of tinnitus using high-frequency audiometry data. A Logistic Regression (LR) model was developed alongside an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and various baseline classifiers to identify the most effective approach for classifying tinnitus presence. The methodology encompassed data preprocessing, feature extraction focused on point detection, and rigorous model evaluation through performance metrics including accuracy, Area Under the ROC Curve (AUC), precision, recall, and F1 scores. The main findings reveal that the LR model, supported by the ANN, significantly outperformed other machine learning models, achieving an accuracy of 94.06%, an AUC of 97.06%, and high precision and recall scores. These results demonstrate the efficacy of the LR model and ANN in accurately diagnosing tinnitus, surpassing traditional diagnostic methods that rely on subjective assessments. The implications of this research are substantial for clinical audiology, suggesting that machine learning, particularly advanced models like ANNs, can provide a more objective and quantifiable tool for tinnitus diagnosis, especially when utilizing high-frequency audiometry data not typically assessed in standard hearing tests. The study underscores the potential for machine learning to facilitate earlier and more accurate tinnitus detection, which could lead to improved patient outcomes. Future work should aim to expand the dataset diversity, explore a broader range of algorithms, and conduct clinical trials to validate the models' practical utility. The research highlights the transformative potential of machine learning, including the LR model and ANN, in audiology, paving the way for advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of tinnitus.

Background and Objective: Tinnitus is a neuropathological condition that results in mild buzzing or ringing of the ears without an external sound source. Current tinnitus diagnostic methods often rely on subjective assessment and require intricate medical examinations. This study aimed to propose an interpretable tinnitus diagnostic framework using auditory late response (ALR) and electroencephalogram (EEG), inspired by the gap-prepulse inhibition (GPI) paradigm., Methods: We collected spontaneous EEG and ALR data from 44 patients with tinnitus and 47 hearing loss-matched controls using specialized hardware to capture responses to sound stimuli with embedded gaps. In this cohort study of tinnitus and control groups, we examined EEG spectral and ALR features of N-P complexes, comparing the responses to gap durations of 50 and 20 ms alongside no-gap conditions. To this end, we developed an interpretable tinnitus diagnostic model using ALR and EEG metrics, boosting machine learning architecture, and explainable feature attribution approaches., Results: Our proposed model achieved 90 % accuracy in identifying tinnitus, with an area under the performance curve of 0.89. The explainable artificial intelligence approaches have revealed gap-embedded ALR features such as the GPI ratio of N1-P2 and EEG spectral ratio, which can serve as diagnostic metrics for tinnitus. Our method successfully provides personalized prediction explanations for tinnitus diagnosis using gap-embedded auditory and neurological features., Conclusions: Deficits in GPI alongside activity in the EEG alpha-beta ratio offer a promising screening tool for assessing tinnitus risk, aligning with current clinical insights from hearing research., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Introduction: Audiovestibular dysfunction has been reported in many autoimmune connective tissue diseases, including systemic sclerosis (SSc)., Objective: To assess the prevalence and features of audiological and vestibular disturbances in SSc patients and evaluate their relationship with disease duration, clinical features, nailfold videocapillaroscopy pattern, and immunologic profiles., Method: A matched case-control study was conducted in a rheumatology clinic of a second-level hospital over 24 months. All patients underwent a detailed ear, nose, and throat examination, as well as audiometric and vestibular assessments, including pure tone audiometry, speech audiometry, immittance tests, and the Video Head Impulse Test., Results: Thirty-five SSc patients and 24 healthy controls were included in the study. In the SSc group, subjective hearing loss was reported by 17.1% of patients, vertigo by 14.3%, tinnitus by 11.4%, and dizziness by 5.7%. Sensorineural hearing loss was identified in 42.9% of SSc patients, significantly higher than in the control group ( p = 0.013). There was no correlation between audiological manifestations and clinical symptoms, organ involvement, immunologic characteristics, and treatment. Vestibular dysfunction was detected in 60% of SSc patients, significantly higher than the control group ( p = 0.05). A significant correlation was found between abnormal Video Head Impulse Test and the presence of anti-RNA polymerase III and anti-Th/To antibodies ( p = 0.05 and p = 0.034, respectively)., Conclusion: Our study revealed an increased prevalence of sensorineural hearing loss and vestibulopathy in SSc patients., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Tinnitus is a phantom sound sensation without an external sound source. Due to its subjective and multifaceted nature it is measured using multi-item self-reported instruments. Many well-validated tinnitus-related questionnaires are available for clinical practice and scientific research, but so far no attention has been paid to their measurement invariance. The study aimed to examine measurement invariance of the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory with regard to gender and hearing impairment, and to identify the items that show differential item functioning (DIF) across the groups., Design: This is a retrospective study using medical data from patients with tinnitus. They completed the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) and underwent pure-tone audiometry., Study Sample: 1106 adult patients with tinnitus (554 women and 552 men; 320 with normal hearing and 786 with hearing loss), aged 19-84 years., Results: In the analysis, multi-group confirmatory factor analysis, hybrid ordinal logistic regression, Kernel smoothing in Item Response Theory, and lasso regression were applied. Measurement invariance was demonstrated across gender, but across hearing status the measurement was non-invariant. Five items were found to have DIF., Conclusions: Researchers and clinicians should be aware of the potential risk of response bias when tinnitus severity is evaluated.

Objective: To explore the validity of the Chinese version of tinnitus handicap inventory (THI-CM) using confirmatory factor analysis. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out. The patients who complained of tinnitus and visited the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery at West China Hospital of Sichuan University from March 15 to June 28, 2023 were included. All participants underwent pure tone audiometry and acoustic impedance testing before filling out THI-CM, and the results were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis. Results: A cross-sectional study was carried out. A total of 300 patients aged (47±13) years participated in this study. There were 175 females (58.3%) and 125 males (41.7%). The confirmatory factor analysis showed that χ 2 / df was 1.597<3.00, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.039<0.05, and standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) was 0.091>0.08. The incremental fit index (IFI), Tucker-Lewis index (TLI), comparative fit index (CFI), and goodness of fit index (GFI) were 0.960, 0.954, 0.960, and 0.902, respectively. The overall model fitted well. Except for one item with a load of 0.493, the load values of the other items were between 0.553 and 0.771. The composite reliability (CR) values of the three dimensions of the scale were between 0.769 and 0.901 (all CR>0.7). The average variance extracted (AVE) values ranged from 0.403 to 0.505 (all AVE<0.7), indicating poor convergent validity of the scale. The square value of AVE in each dimension of the scale was smaller than the correlation coefficient between factors, indicating poor discriminant validity of the scale. Conclusions: The THI-CM has good structural validity, which can be used as an effective tool to evaluate the overall severity of tinnitus. However, its convergent validity and discriminant validity are poor.

Musicians are at risk of hearing loss and tinnitus due to regular exposure to high levels of noise. This level of risk may have been underestimated previously since damage to the auditory system, such as cochlear synaptopathy, may not be easily detectable using standard clinical measures. Most previous research investigating hearing loss in musicians has involved cross-sectional study designs that may capture only a snapshot of hearing health in relation to noise exposure. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cumulative noise exposure on behavioural, electrophysiological, and self-report indices of hearing damage in early-career musicians and non-musicians with normal hearing over a 2-year period. Participants completed an annual test battery consisting of pure tone audiometry, extended high-frequency hearing thresholds, distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs), speech perception in noise, auditory brainstem responses, and self-report measures of tinnitus, hyperacusis, and hearing in background noise. Participants also completed the Noise Exposure Structured Interview to estimate cumulative noise exposure across the study period. Linear mixed models assessed changes over time. The longitudinal analysis comprised 64 early-career musicians (female n = 34; age range at T0 = 18-26 years) and 30 non-musicians (female n = 20; age range at T0 = 18-27 years). There were few longitudinal changes as a result of musicianship. Small improvements over time in some measures may be attributable to a practice/test-retest effect. Some measures (e.g., DPOAE indices of outer hair cell function) were associated with noise exposure at each time point, but did not show a significant change over time. A small proportion of participants reported a worsening of their tinnitus symptoms, which participants attributed to noise exposure, or not using hearing protection. Future longitudinal studies should attempt to capture the effects of noise exposure over a longer period, taken at several time points, for a precise measure of how hearing changes over time. Hearing conservation programmes for "at risk" individuals should closely monitor DPOAEs to detect early signs of noise-induced hearing loss when audiometric thresholds are clinically normal., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Purpose: An up-to-date overview of epidemiology, etiology and pathophysiological mechanisms, diagnostic and evaluation methods, current treatment status and future directions of subjective tinnitus in adults., Methods: Review of current evidence-based literature on subjective tinnitus in adults., Results: The prevalence of subjective tinnitus in the adult population is estimated to be around 14%, and it tends to increase with age. Subjective tinnitus is a complex condition with multiple factors contributing to its origin. However, the exact causes and underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Potential causes may include hearing loss, dysfunction in the somatosensory system, and auditory cortical dysfunction, although severe underlying pathology is rare. Currently, diagnosis primarily relies on patient self-reported medical history and physician-based clinical assessment due to the lack of objective testing. Various treatment and management options have been proposed, but their effectiveness varies, and there is no universally agreed-upon treatment option., Conclusions: Tinnitus is a complex and heterogeneous disease with a high incidence rate and a tendency to increase with age. A holistic perspective is needed to understand the generation, perception, and emotional responses to tinnitus. Diagnosis requires a comprehensive assessment based on medical history and relevant examinations, identification of concurrent psychosomatic comorbidities, and active pursuit of objective diagnostic methods. At the same time, on the basis of existing treatment plans and combining emerging technologies, we will develop new personalized, precise, and combined treatment plans., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Tinnitus denotes the perception of a non-environmental sound and might result from aberrant auditory prediction. Successful prediction of formal (e.g., type) and temporal sound characteristics facilitates the filtering of irrelevant information, also labelled as 'sensory gating' (SG). Here, we explored if and how parallel manipulations of formal prediction violations and temporal predictability affect SG in persons with and without tinnitus. Age-, education- and sex-matched persons with and without tinnitus (N = 52) participated and listened to paired-tone oddball sequences, varying in formal (standard vs. deviant pitch) and temporal predictability (isochronous vs. random timing). EEG was recorded from 128 channels and data were analyzed by means of temporal spatial principal component analysis (tsPCA). SG was assessed by amplitude suppression for the 2nd tone in a pair and was observed in P50-like activity in both timing conditions and groups. Correspondingly, deviants elicited overall larger amplitudes than standards. However, only persons without tinnitus displayed a larger N100-like deviance response in the isochronous compared to the random timing condition. This result might imply that persons with tinnitus do not benefit similarly as persons without tinnitus from temporal predictability in deviance processing. Thus, persons with tinnitus might display less temporal sensitivity in auditory processing than persons without tinnitus., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: Diagnosis and severity assessment of tinnitus are mostly based on the patient's descriptions and subjective questionnaires, which lacks objective means of diagnosis and assessment bases, the accuracy of which fluctuates with the clarity of the patient's description. This complicates the timely modification of treatment strategies or therapeutic music to improve treatment efficacy., New Method: We employed a novel random convolutional kernel-based method for electrocardiogram (ECG) signal analysis to identify patients' emotional states during Music Tinnitus Sound Therapy (Music-TST) sessions. Then analyzed correlations between emotional changes in different treatment phase and Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) score differences to determine the impact of emotions on tinnitus treatment efficacy., Results: This study revealed a significant correlation between patients' emotion changes during Music-TST and the therapy's effectiveness. Changes in arousal and dominance dimension, were strongly linked to THI variations. These findings highlight the substantial impact of emotional responses on sound therapy's efficacy, offering a new perspective for understanding and optimizing tinnitus treatment., Comparison With Existing Methods: Compared to existing methods, we proposed an objective indicator to assess the progress of sound therapy, the indicator could also be used to provide feedback to optimize sound therapy music., Conclusions: This study revealed the critical role of emotion changes in tinnitus sound therapy. By integrating objective ECG-based emotion analysis with traditional subjective scale like THI, we present an innovative approach to assess and potentially optimize therapy effectiveness. This finding could lead to more personalized and effective treatment strategies for tinnitus sound therapy., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors of this work declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. All authors have approved the manuscript for submission and without any potential competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Since the presence of tinnitus is not always associated with audiometric hearing loss, it has been hypothesized that hidden hearing loss may act as a potential trigger for increased central gain along the neural pathway leading to tinnitus perception. In recent years, the study of hidden hearing loss has improved with the discovery of cochlear synaptopathy and several objective diagnostic markers. This study investigated three potential markers of peripheral hidden hearing loss in subjects with tinnitus: extended high-frequency audiometric thresholds, the auditory brainstem response, and the envelope following response. In addition, speech intelligibility was measured as a functional outcome measurement of hidden hearing loss. To account for age-related hidden hearing loss, participants were grouped according to age, presence of tinnitus, and audiometric thresholds. Group comparisons were conducted to differentiate between age- and tinnitus-related effects of hidden hearing loss. All three markers revealed age-related differences, whereas no differences were observed between the tinnitus and non-tinnitus groups. However, the older tinnitus group showed improved performance on low-pass filtered speech in noise tests compared to the older non-tinnitus group. These low-pass speech in noise scores were significantly correlated with tinnitus distress, as indicated using questionnaires, and could be related to the presence of hyperacusis. Based on our observations, cochlear synaptopathy does not appear to be the underlying cause of tinnitus. The improvement in low-pass speech-in-noise could be explained by enhanced temporal fine structure encoding or hyperacusis. Therefore, we recommend that future tinnitus research takes into account age-related factors, explores low-frequency encoding, and thoroughly assesses hyperacusis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest none, (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Objective: To analyze the disease characteristics, diagnosis and treatment methods of venous pulsatile tinnitus treated by intervention of sigmoid sinus. Methods: Fifty patients (from Shandong Provincial ENT Hospital, Shandong University between February 2014 and July 2020) with venous pulsatile tinnitus treated by sigmoid sinus surgery were analyzed retrospectively. The tinnitus characteristics, imaging findings, surgical methods, intraoperative findings and postoperative tinnitus changes were recorded. The patients were followed up for 6-12 months. The sign rank sum test was used to analyze the difference in tinnitus grading before and after surgery. There were 50 patients with unilateral venous pulsatile tinnitus, including 49 females and 1 male. The age ranged from 17 to 67 years, with a median age of 44 years. There were 45 cases of right tinnitus and 5 cases of left tinnitus. The degree of tinnitus before operation was grade Ⅱ or above, including 4 cases of gradeⅡ, 11 cases of grade Ⅲ, 22 cases of grade Ⅳ and 13 cases of grade Ⅴ. Results: Thirty-seven cases were cured, 8 cases were ineffective (no change in tinnitus), 3 cases were markedly effective (tinnitus grade decreased by 3 in 2 cases, 4 in 1 case), and 2 cases were effective (tinnitus grade decreased by 1). The difference of tinnitus grade before and after operation was statistically significant ( Z =-5.70, P <0.05). Temporal bone CT showed 36 cases of sigmoid diverticulum (including 17 cases with sigmoid sinus dehiscence), 12 cases of sigmoid sinus dehiscence and 2 cases of absence of the temporal bone cortex abutting to sigmoid sinus. Thirty-five cases were performed with closure of sigmoid sinus diverticulum, 4 cases were performed with resurfacing of the sigmoid plate, 5 cases were performed with narrowing of sigmoid sinus, 4 cases were performed with simple opening of pre sigmoid mastoid air chamber, 1 case of opening was performed with pre sigmoid mastoid air chamber combined with narrowing of sigmoid sinus, and 1 case was performed with opening of pre sigmoid mastoid air chamber combined with closure of sigmoid sinus diverticulum. Conclusions: Venous pulsatile tinnitus is common in women. The common causes may be sigmoid sinus wall abnormalities such as sigmoid sinus diverticulum and perisigmoid bone defect. Imaging examinations are helpful for diagnosis. Venous pulsatile tinnitus can be treated with surgery.

Tinnitus, the perception of sound with no external auditory stimulus, is a complex, multifaceted, and potentially devastating disorder. Despite recent advances in our understanding of tinnitus, there are limited options for effective treatment. Tinnitus treatments are made more complicated by the lack of a test for tinnitus based on objectively measured physiological characteristics. Such an objective test would enable a greater understanding of tinnitus mechanisms and may lead to faster treatment development in both animal and human research. This review makes the argument that an objective tinnitus test, such as a non-invasive electrophysiological measure, is desperately needed. We review the current tinnitus assessment methods, the underlying neural correlates of tinnitus, the multiple tinnitus generation theories, and the previously investigated electrophysiological measurements of tinnitus. Finally, we propose an alternate objective test for tinnitus that may be valid in both animal and human subjects., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have a patent pending for the development of a ‘long-duration sound test’ that could be used as a tool to test for tinnitus., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Tinnitus is a multifactorial phenomenon with quality-of-life detriments for those affected by it. We aim to establish a relationship between subjective tinnitus severity with objective audiometric data in the extended high frequency (EHF) from 9 to 16 khz and with distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE). We hypothesize that severe subjective tinnitus as measured by the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) does not correlate with increased hearing thresholds in the EHF range., Study Design: Prospective., Setting: Single Tertiary Care Center., Methods: Patients identified with tinnitus and normal hearing thresholds within standard frequency range (250-8000 Hz) were consented for participation. Those with underlying otologic disease, trauma, radiotherapy, or ototoxic drug use were excluded. The THI questionnaire was given to eligible patients and audiometric test results were collected. THI scores were categorized by severity groups. An n = 20 to 30 was determined to have an effect size of 0.7 with a significance level of P = .05., Results: THI and audiometric data were collected for 38 patients and categorized into mild (n = 18, 47.4%), moderate (n = 8, 21.1%), slight (n = 7, 18.4%), and severe (n = 5, 13.2%) tinnitus severity groups. Mean THI score was 32.3 ± 19.6 with a statistically significant difference in scores by assigned THI severity group (P < .01). There were no significant differences or linear relationship among hearing thresholds in EHF range or DPOAE stratified by subjective tinnitus group (P = .49, r 2  = 0.10) CONCLUSION: Subjective tinnitus severity is not predictive of audiometric outcomes. This finding can be used as a counseling tool to help tinnitus patients manage symptoms, expectations, and overall treatment outcomes., (© 2024 American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Foundation.)

Purpose of Review: The purpose of this review is to provide an updated approach to the evaluation and management of pulsatile tinnitus (PT), an uncommon but often treatable subtype of tinnitus., Recent Findings: Secondary PT can be due to either vascular or non-vascular etiologies, including, but not limited to: neoplasm, arteriovenous malformation or fistula, idiopathic intracranial hypertension, dural venous sinus stenosis, otoacoustic etiologies (e.g., otosclerosis, patulous eustachian tube) and bony defects (e.g., superior semicircular canal dehiscence). Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) imaging have comparable diagnostic yield, though each may be more sensitive to specific etiologies. If initial vascular imaging is negative and a vascular etiology is strongly suspected, digital subtraction angiography (DSA) may further aid in the diagnosis. Many vascular etiologies of PT can be managed endovascularly, often leading to PT improvement or resolution. Notably, venous sinus stenting is an emerging therapy for PT secondary to idiopathic intracranial hypertension with venous sinus stenosis. Careful history and physical exam can help establish the differential diagnosis for PT and guide subsequent evaluation and management. Additional studies on the efficacy and long-term outcome of venous sinus stenting for venous stenosis are warranted., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) was developed to be responsive to small treatment-related changes in the impact of tinnitus. Yet, no studies have integrated anchor-based and distribution-based techniques to produce a single Minimal Important Change (MIC) score. Here, we evaluated the responsiveness and interpretability of the TFI, determining for the first time a robust MIC score in a UK clinical population. Two-hundred and fifty-five patients with tinnitus participated in this prospective longitudinal validation study. Distribution-based estimates (Standard Error of Measurement, Smallest Detectable Change and Effect size) and anchor-based estimates of important change (minimal clinically important difference and Receiver Operator Curve optimal value) were calculated and then integrated using a visual anchor-based MIC distribution plot. A reduction in score of −14 was determined as the MIC estimate that exceeds the measurement error, most of the variability and reliably identifies patients demonstrating true improvement. It is therefore recommended that a reduction of 14 points should be used as a minimum change required when calculating statistical power and sample size in tinnitus intervention studies and assessing patients in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study aims to design a Concise and Practical Chinese Tinnitus Disorder Scale (CPCTDS), evaluate its psychometric measurement characteristics, and help doctors in making diagnoses and treatments., Methods: A sample of 482 tinnitus patients completed CPCTDS. The patients also completed the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and the Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI)., Results: The eight items of CPCTDS were extracted through its exploratory factor analysis, which had strong internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.855). The correlations between the total scores of CPCTDS and Tinnitus Disability Inventory (TDI; r = 0.960, P < 0.05) and TFI (r = 0.749, P < 0.05) indicated a good criterion validity. The correlation of the CPCTDS emotional subscale with the TFI emotional subscale (r = 0.650, P < 0.05), CES-D (r = 0.488, P < 0.05), and BAI (r =.384, p< 0.05) showed that the convergent validity of CPCTDS was satisfactory., Conclusions: CPCTDS and the original Chinese version of TDI were highly reliable and valid. This finding shows that the two scales can be reliably used to assess the severity of tinnitus in clinical areas., (Copyright © 2024 Noise & Health.)

Background: Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) can affect both hearing and balance due to increased inner ear pressure., Aims/objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of increased inner ear pressure on hearing and balance in patients with IIH using auditory and vestibular tests., Material and Methods: Twenty-four IIH patients and 28 healthy controls underwent oVEMP, pure tone audiometry, tympanometry, and acoustic reflex tests pre-lumbar punctures. IIH patients received acetazolamide. Pre- and post-treatment results, tinnitus, and vertigo scores were compared. Post-treatment oVEMP and audiometry results were compared between groups., Results: Pre-treatment oVEMP showed a significant left N1 latency difference ( p  = 0.049). Post-treatment, left ear amplitude ( p  = 0.035) and both ear amplitude ratios ( p  = 0.044 and p  = 0.047) increased significantly. Audiometry had no significant changes ( p  < 0.05). Tinnitus and vertigo scores decreased significantly ( p  ≤ 0.001)., Conclusion: Prolonged oVEMP latency suggests IIH may impact the brain stem and vestibular nerve, while increased amplitude values indicate peripheral vestibular involvement. IIH affects hearing across all frequencies, especially at 4000 Hz, impacting both hearing and balance., Significance: Understanding the effects of IIH on auditory and vestibular functions can guide effective treatments, improving quality of life for patients by addressing both hearing and balance issues.

Objective: Self-report instruments are commonly used in tinnitus clinics, but they are presently available only for adults. There is a lack of a validated multi-item instrument to capture tinnitus-related problems in children and their impact on everyday life. This study has developed and validated a specifically child-centered questionnaire to assess the impact of tinnitus., Methods: Development of the tool consisted of several stages. Following a pilot study on 12 children with tinnitus, a validation study was done on a further 192 children with tinnitus aged between 11 and 14 years. The children had an audiological examination, completed a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the newly framed questionnaire., Results: The development and validation process resulted in the new 11-item Children's Tinnitus Questionnaire (CTQ). It includes items concerning the impact of tinnitus on functional, cognitive, emotional and social domains. The validity of the new tool has been established by finding significant correlations between it and VAS loudness (r = 0.42), VAS annoyance (r = 0.67), and VAS coping (r = -0.41). Validity has also been confirmed by measuring differences in CTQ scores and 4 groups of children having graded incidences of tinnitus. The internal consistency assessed with Cronbach's alpha was high (α = 0.82)., Conclusion: The Children's Tinnitus Questionnaire (CTQ) is the first fully validated multi-item instrument designed specifically for children. The tool has the potential to become a valuable new instrument for use in clinical practice and research; it might be useful for assessing the impact of tinnitus on those children who find that the condition creates problems in their everyday life., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To identify distinct clinical subtypes of Ménière's disease by analyzing data acquired from a UK registry of patients who have been diagnosed with Ménière's disease., Study Design: Observational study., Methods: Patients with Ménière's disease were identified at secondary/tertiary care clinics. Cluster analysis was performed by grouping participants sharing similar characteristics and risk factors into groups based on a defined measure of similarity., Results: A total of 411 participants were recruited into this study. Two main clusters were identified: participants diagnosed with ear infections (OR = 0.30, p < 0.014, 95% CI: 0.11-0.78) were more likely to be allocated in Cluster 1 (C1). Participants reporting tinnitus in both ears (OR = 11.89, p < 0.001, 95% CI: 4.08-34.64), low pitched tinnitus (OR = 21.09, p < 0.001, 95% CI: 7.47-59.54), and those reporting stress as a trigger for vertigo attacks (OR = 14.94, p < 0.001, 95% CI: 4.54-49.10) were significantly more likely to be in Cluster 2 (C2). Also, participants diagnosed with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (OR = 13.14, <0.001, 95% CI: 4.35-39.74), autoimmune disease (OR = 5.97, p < 0.007, 95% CI: 1.62-22.03), depression (OR = 4.72, p < 0.056, 95% CI: 0.96-23.24), migraines (OR = 3.13, p < 0.008, 95% CI: 1.34-7.26), drug allergy (OR = 3.25, p < 0.029, 95% CI: 1.13-9.34), and hay fever (OR = 3.12, p < 0.009, 95% CI: 1.33-7.34) were significantly more likely to be clustered in C2., Conclusions: This study supports the hypothesis that Ménière's disease is a heterogeneous condition with subgroups that may be identifiable by clinical features. Two main clusters were identified with differing putative etiological factors., Level of Evidence: 3 Laryngoscope, 134:3286-3292, 2024., (© 2024 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.)

Background: Tinnitus affects approximately 740 million adults globally, involving hearing, emotion, and sleep systems. However, studies using polysomnography and pure-tone audiometry (PTA) are limited. We aimed to assess the correlation between tinnitus and hearing, sleep quality, characteristics, and depression using polysomnography and PTA., Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we divided participants into tinnitus and non-tinnitus groups. We included 100 outpatients (65 with tinnitus, 35 without) from a medical center in Taiwan, who underwent polysomnography and completed rating scales including the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Chinese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Chinese-Mandarin version of the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI-CM). We analyzed correlations, conducted group comparisons, assessed factors related to THI-CM scores, constructed ROC curves to predict depression in the tinnitus group, and performed multinomial and logistic regression to explore associations., Results: Descriptive statistics identified a cohort with mean age 53.9 ± 12.80 years, 63% exhibited PHQ-9 scores ≥ 10, and 66% had Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI) > 5. The ratio of rapid eye movement and deep sleep to stage 1 + 2 sleep was relatively low and non-significant. Likewise, leg movements was higher in the tinnitus group but not statistically significant. In the tinnitus group, 63.08% had depression, and 81.54% had AHI > 5. Univariate logistic regression linked tinnitus to AHI > 5 (Odds ratio (OR) 2.67, p = 0.026) and male sex (OR 2.49, p = 0.034). A moderate positive correlation was found between the THI-CM score and PHQ-9 score (rs = 0.50, p < 0.001). Further adjustment for obstructive sleep apnea showed associations between PHQ-9 (total score) or depression and THI-CM Grade 3-5 (OR = 1.28; OR = 8.68). Single- and multifactor regression analyses highlighted significant associations of PSQI scores > 13 (OR 7.06, p = 0.018) and THI-CM scores > 47 (OR 7.43, p = 0.002) with depression., Conclusions: Our study recruited tinnitus participants with slight or mild hearing loss and mild tinnitus handicap. Depression was identified as a predominant factor in tinnitus-related handicap. The mild tinnitus handicap in tinnitus participants may explain the lack of significant differences in depression, sleep quality, and polysomnographic sleep characteristics between tinnitus and non-tinnitus groups. Further extensive and prospective studies are needed to elucidate the complex links among depression, sleep, and tinnitus., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Objective: To investigate the clinical manifestations and complete auditory function in primary tinnitus patients with and without migraine or vestibular migraine., Design: Retrospective case-control study., Setting: A tertiary referral center., Participants: This study enrolled 298 patients from the Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital. All patients were diagnosed with primary tinnitus by a neurotologist between April 2020 and August 2021. Patients were excluded if they had histories of chronic otitis media, idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss, Ménière's disease, skull base neoplasm, or temporal bone trauma., Interventions: Twenty-five-item Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), speech audiometry including speech recognition threshold, most comfortable level, uncomfortable loudness levels, dynamic range, and pure-tone audiometry., Main Outcomes Measures: Objective hearing loss is defined as a mean threshold greater than 25 dB. Extremely elevated THI is defined as a score greater than 1 standard deviation above the mean THI., Results: Among the 298 patients with tinnitus, 149 were women and 149 were men, with a mean age of 57.06 (range, 19.22-94.58) years.A total of 125 patients completed the THI questionnaire during their initial visit. The median THI score was 32 (95% confidence interval: 13.98-56.00), and the mean score was 34.99 with a standard deviation of 21.01. The sole contributing factor significantly associated with higher total THI score was the diagnosis of migraine or vestibular migraine (p < 0.001, odds ratio = 19.41).Tinnitus patients with migraine or vestibular migraine exhibited significantly lower mean pure-tone auditory thresholds (right 22.2 versus 29.5, p = 0.002; left 22.5 versus 30.4, p < 0.001), speech recognition threshold (right 20.0 versus 25.2, p = 0.016; left 20.2 versus 25.5, p = 0.019), and most comfortable levels values (right 46.1 versus 51.4, p = 0.007; left 46.9 versus 51.4, p = 0.021) compared with the tinnitus patients without migraine., Conclusions: In this population-based study, patients with primary tinnitus experienced significantly higher THI scores and exhibited concurrent symptoms, including dizziness/vertigo, cervicalgia, and migraine or vestibular migraine. Among these parameters, the diagnosis of migraine or vestibular migraine was the sole contributor to significant higher THI score., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare. All authors have seen and agree with the contents of the article, and there is no financial interest to report. The authors certify that the submission is original work and is not under review at any other publication., (Copyright © 2024, Otology & Neurotology, Inc.)

Chronic tinnitus is a symptom of disturbed auditory perception. More than 90% of tinnitus patients suffer from hearing loss. Many people experience tinnitus and seek for treatment, but suffering and actual burden of tinnitus is individually very different, sometimes it disappears after a certain time even without treatment. This process is called habituation. The actual suffering from tinnitus depends on stress symptoms and other psychosomatic comorbidities like depression, anxiety and sleeping disorders.Up-to-date there is no therapy that can completely switch off tinnitus, mainly because the origin and expression of tinnitus are individual and very different. This educational publication summarizes and evaluates scientific therapeutic approaches for chronic tinnitus, based on the newly elaborated S3-Guideline "Chronic Tinnitus", under the lead management of the German Society of ENT, Head and Neck-Surgery, published in 2021. It focusses on recommendations for counselling, interventions against hearing loss and psychotherapy, mainly cognitive behavioural therapy., Competing Interests: Erklärung zu finanziellen Interessen Forschungsförderung erhalten: nein; Honorar/geldwerten Vorteil für Referententätigkeit erhalten: nein; Bezahlter Berater/interner Schulungsreferent/Gehaltsempfänger: nein; Patent/Geschäftsanteile/Aktien (Autor/Partner, Ehepartner, Kinder) an im Bereich der Medizin aktiven Firma: ja; Patent/Geschäftsanteile/Aktien (Autor/Partner, Ehepartner, Kinder) an zu Sponsoren dieser Fortbildung bzw. durch die Fortbildung in ihren Geschäftsinteressen berührten Firma: nein Erklärung zu nichtfinanziellen Interessen Gerhard Hesse ist Mitglied der Deutschen Gesellschaft für HNO-Heilkunde, Kopf- und Halschirurgie, Mit-Koordinator der Leitlinie Tinnitus und Sprecher des Wissenschaftlichen Beirats der Deutschen Tinnitus-Liga., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Objective: This study aims to control all hearing thresholds, including extended high frequencies (EHFs), presents stimuli of varying difficulty levels, and measures electroencephalography (EEG) and pupillometry responses to determine whether listening difficulty in tinnitus patients is effort or fatigue-related., Methods: Twenty-one chronic tinnitus patients and 26 matched healthy controls having normal pure-tone averages with symmetrical hearing thresholds were included. Subjects were evaluated with 0.125-20 kHz pure-tone audiometry, Montreal Cognitive Assessment Test (MoCA), Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), EEG, and pupillometry., Results: Pupil dilatation and EEG alpha power during the "encoding" phase of the presented sentence in tinnitus patients were less in all listening conditions (p < .05). Also, there was no statistically significant relationship between EEG and pupillometry components for all listening conditions and THI or MoCA (p > .05)., Conclusion: EEG and pupillometry results under various listening conditions indicate potential listening effort in tinnitus patients even if all frequencies, including EHFs, are controlled. Also, we suggest that pupillometry should be interpreted with caution in autonomic nervous system-related conditions such as tinnitus., (© 2024 The Author(s). Brain and Behavior published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Objective: This study aimed to assess degree of audiovestibular handicap in patients with vestibular schwannoma., Methods: Audiovestibular handicap was assessed using the Hearing Handicap Inventory, Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and Dizziness Handicap Inventory. Patients completed questionnaires at presentation and at least one year following treatment with microsurgery, stereotactic radiosurgery or observation. Changes in audiovestibular handicap and factors affecting audiovestibular handicap were assessed., Results: All handicap scores increased at follow up, but not significantly. The Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and Dizziness Handicap Inventory scores predicted tinnitus and dizziness respectively. The Hearing Handicap Inventory was not predictive of hearing loss. Age predicted Tinnitus Handicap Inventory score and microsurgery was associated with a deterioration in Dizziness Handicap Inventory score., Conclusion: Audiovestibular handicap is common in patients with vestibular schwannoma, with 75 per cent having some degree of handicap in at least one inventory. The overall burden of handicap was, however, low. The increased audiovestibular handicap over time was not statistically significant, irrespective of treatment modality.

A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the Tinnitus Impact Questionnaire (TIQ) was performed. In contrast to commonly used tinnitus questionnaires, the TIQ is intended solely to assess the impact of tinnitus by not including items related to hearing loss or tinnitus loudness. This was a psychometric study based on a retrospective cross-sectional analysis of clinical data. Data were available for 155 new patients who had attended a tinnitus and hyperacusis clinic in the UK within a five-month period and had completed the TIQ. The mean age was 54 years (standard deviation = 14 years). The TIQ demonstrated good internal consistency, with Cronbach's α = 0.84 and McDonald's ω = 0.89. CFA showed that two items of the TIQ had low factor loadings for both one-factor and two-factor models and their scores showed low correlations with scores for other items. Bi-factor analysis gave a better fit, indicated by a relative chi-square (χ2) of 18.5, a Root-Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) of 0.103, a Comparative Fit Index (CFI) of 0.97, a Tucker Lewis Index (TLI) of 0.92, and a Standardized Root-Mean Residual (SPMR) of 0.038. Total TIQ scores were moderately correlated with scores for the Visual Analogue Scale of effect of tinnitus on life and the Screening for Anxiety and Depression-Tinnitus questionnaire, supporting the convergent validity of the TIQ. The TIQ score was not correlated with the pure-tone average hearing threshold, indicating discriminant validity. A multiple-causes multiple-indicator (MIMIC) model showed no influences of age, gender or hearing status on TIQ item scores. The TIQ is an internally consistent tool. CFA suggests a bi-factor model with sufficient unidimensionality to support the use of the overall TIQ score for assessing the impact of tinnitus. TIQ scores are distinct from the impact of hearing impairment among patients who have tinnitus combined with hearing loss., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Aazh et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

This research investigates the application of machine learning to improve the diagnosis of tinnitus using high-frequency audiometry data. A Logistic Regression (LR) model was developed alongside an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and various baseline classifiers to identify the most effective approach for classifying tinnitus presence. The methodology encompassed data preprocessing, feature extraction focused on point detection, and rigorous model evaluation through performance metrics including accuracy, Area Under the ROC Curve (AUC), precision, recall, and F1 scores. The main findings reveal that the LR model, supported by the ANN, significantly outperformed other machine learning models, achieving an accuracy of 94.06%, an AUC of 97.06%, and high precision and recall scores. These results demonstrate the efficacy of the LR model and ANN in accurately diagnosing tinnitus, surpassing traditional diagnostic methods that rely on subjective assessments. The implications of this research are substantial for clinical audiology, suggesting that machine learning, particularly advanced models like ANNs, can provide a more objective and quantifiable tool for tinnitus diagnosis, especially when utilizing high-frequency audiometry data not typically assessed in standard hearing tests. The study underscores the potential for machine learning to facilitate earlier and more accurate tinnitus detection, which could lead to improved patient outcomes. Future work should aim to expand the dataset diversity, explore a broader range of algorithms, and conduct clinical trials to validate the models' practical utility. The research highlights the transformative potential of machine learning, including the LR model and ANN, in audiology, paving the way for advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of tinnitus., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Sadegh-Zadeh, Soleimani Mamalo, Kavianpour, Atashbar, Heidari, Hajizadeh, Roshani, Habibzadeh, Saadat, Behmanesh, Saadat and Gargari.)

Objective: To evaluate differences in tinnitus impact, hyperacusis and hearing threshold level (HTL) between patients with unilateral and bilateral tinnitus. For patients with unilateral tinnitus, to compare audiological variables for the tinnitus ear and the non-tinnitus ear. To assess whether the presence of unilateral tinnitus increases the likelihood of interaural hearing asymmetry (relative to bilateral tinnitus) that warrants referral for an MRI scan., Design: Retrospective cross-sectional., Study Sample: Data regarding HTLs and responses to self-report questionnaires were collected from the records of 311 patients attending a tinnitus clinic., Results: 38.5% had unilateral tinnitus and the ears with tinnitus had higher HTLs and greater HTL slopes than the ears without tinnitus. There was no significant difference in tinnitus impact and hyperacusis between patients with unilateral and bilateral tinnitus. 40% of patients with unilateral tinnitus and 13% of patients with bilateral tinnitus had a between-ear difference in HTL ≥15 dB at two adjacent frequencies (2AF15 asymmetry). Unilateral tinnitus increased the risk of 2AF15 asymmetry by a factor of 4.4., Conclusions: Unilateral tinnitus increases the risk of having interaural asymmetry in HTLs that warrants referral for an MRI scan.

The Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) was developed to be responsive to small treatment-related changes in the impact of tinnitus. Yet, no studies have integrated anchor-based and distribution-based techniques to produce a single Minimal Important Change (MIC) score. Here, we evaluated the responsiveness and interpretability of the TFI, determining for the first time a robust MIC score in a UK clinical population. Two-hundred and fifty-five patients with tinnitus participated in this prospective longitudinal validation study. Distribution-based estimates (Standard Error of Measurement, Smallest Detectable Change and Effect size) and anchor-based estimates of important change (minimal clinically important difference and Receiver Operator Curve optimal value) were calculated and then integrated using a visual anchor-based MIC distribution plot. A reduction in score of −14 was determined as the MIC estimate that exceeds the measurement error, most of the variability and reliably identifies patients demonstrating true improvement. It is therefore recommended that a reduction of 14 points should be used as a minimum change required when calculating statistical power and sample size in tinnitus intervention studies and assessing patients in clinical practice.

Background: Pulsatile tinnitus (PT) may be due to a spectrum of cerebrovascular etiologies, ranging from benign venous turbulence to life threatening dural arteriovenous fistulas. A focused clinical history and physical examination provide clues to the ultimate diagnosis; however, the predictive accuracy of these features in determining PT etiology remains uncertain., Methods: Patients with clinical PT evaluation and DSA were included. The final etiology of PT after DSA was categorized as shunting, venous, arterial, or non-vascular. Clinical variables were compared between etiologies using multivariate logistic regression, and performance at predicting PT etiology was determined by area under the receiver operating curve (AUROC)., Results: 164 patients were included. On multivariate analysis, patient reported high pitch PT (relative risk (RR) 33.81; 95% CI 3.81 to 882.80) compared with exclusively low pitch PT and presence of a bruit on physical examination (9.95; 2.04 to 62.08; P=0.007) were associated with shunting PT. Hearing loss was associated with a lower risk of shunting PT (0.16; 0.03 to 0.79; P=0.029). Alleviation of PT with ipsilateral lateral neck pressure was associated with a higher risk of venous PT (5.24; 1.62 to 21.01; P=0.010). An AUROC of 0.882 was achieved for predicting the presence or absence of a shunt and 0.751 for venous PT., Conclusion: In patients with PT, clinical history and physical examination can achieve high performance at detecting a shunting lesion. Potentially treatable venous etiologies may also be suggested by relief with neck compression., Competing Interests: Competing interests: MRA: board member: Mind Rhythm; consultancy: Stryker, Neurovascular, Covidien, and MicroVention; comments: pipeline proctor for Covidien and PHIL DSMB for MicroVention; patents (planned, pending, or issued): cerebral venous sinus stent; comments: provisional patent serial No 62/984,549. KHN: consultancy: Stryker Neurovascular and Imperative Care., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Hearing impairment has been linked to several cardiovascular diseases. However, the association between hearing disorders, genetic predisposition, and new-onset AF remains largely unknown., Methods: A total of 476,773 participants (mean age 56.5 years) free of AF at baseline (from 2006 to 2010) were included from the UK Biobank study. The presence of hearing disorders including hearing difficulty and tinnitus was self-reported through the touchscreen questionnaire. AF was defined using ICD-10 code: I48 and was followed till February 1st. 2022. The Cox model was used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI)., Results: During a median follow-up of 13.0 years, the AF incidence rate was 2.9 per 1000 person-years. After adjustments for potential confounders, the presence of hearing difficulty (HR, 1.35; 95% CI: 1.32-1.39) and the use of hearing aid (1.45; 1.37-1.53) were significantly associated with risk of new-onset AF. Compared to individuals without tinnitus, the AF risk increased by 17% among those who experienced tinnitus occasionally (1.17; 1.09-1.25), 23% among those who experienced tinnitus frequently (1.23; 1.10-1.39), and 32% among those who experienced tinnitus consistently (1.32; 1.22-1.42). No significant difference was observed across different groups of genetic risk score for AF onset., Conclusions: Our study provides evidence regarding significant associations of hearing difficulty, use of hearing aid, and tinnitus with risk of incident AF. Findings highlight the potential that screening hearing disorders can benefit AF prevention., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: This study was designed to determine whether extended high-frequency audiometry was capable of better differentiating between participants with normal hearing who did or did not have subjective tinnitus., Methods: A total of 96 study participants were enrolled: 36 patients with unilateral tinnitus, 28 patients with bilateral tinnitus and 32 volunteers as controls. All 96 participants exhibited normal audiometry findings and hearing thresholds. Extended high-frequency audiometry was used to evaluate these patients., Results: There were differences between the extended high-frequency hearing thresholds of affected and unaffected ears in those with unilateral tinnitus, and in the 20-29-year-old bilateral tinnitus group, at 11.2, 12.5 and 14 kHz. Unilateral tinnitus subgroups had higher extended high-frequency hearing thresholds than those in control subjects, at all extended high frequencies., Conclusion: Extended high-frequency audiometry can offer additional information regarding the hearing status of patients with tinnitus who exhibit normal pure tone thresholds when analysed via conventional hearing thresholds.

Objectives: The aim of this interventional non-randomised prospective controlled study was to assess the effectiveness of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) in human subjects with tinnitus., Design: The Parasym TM tVNS device was paired with an auditory stimulation. Treatment and observations were conducted over 12 weeks. Audiological evaluation was performed. Responses from a set of questionnaires and quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) before and after treatment were collected. Voice measurements were done to assess possible side-effects of tVNS., Study Sample: The study involved 29 adults who had chronic tinnitus (15 patients who underwent tVNS paired with sounds and a control group of 14 patients who did not)., Results: In general, subjective and objective measurements of tinnitus showed no improvement in the study group compared to the controls, although certain parameters as gauged by the questionnaires did statistically improve. The loudness and frequency of tinnitus remained the same in both groups. For the qEEG, activity in the theta band increased significantly in the study group compared to the control group., Conclusions: The tVNS was not effective in reducing tinnitus symptoms in our study group. However, changes in the theta band suggest there might be cortical effects that might, with sustained treatment, lead to improvements.

Venous sinus stenosis has garnered increasing academic attention as a potential etiology of idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) and pulsatile tinnitus (PT). The complex anatomy of the cerebral venous sinuses and veins plays a crucial role in the pathophysiology of these conditions. Venous sinus stenosis, often found in the superior sagittal or transverse sinus, can lead to elevated intracranial pressure (ICP) and characteristic IIH symptoms. Stenosis, variations in dural venous anatomy, and flow dominance patterns contribute to aberrant flow and subsequent PT. Accurate imaging plays a vital role in diagnosis, and magnetic resonance (MR) venography is particularly useful for detecting stenosis. Management strategies for IIH and PT focus on treating the underlying disease, weight management, medical interventions, and, in severe cases, surgical or endovascular procedures. Recently, venous sinus stenting has gained interest as a minimally invasive treatment option for IIH and PT. Stenting addresses venous sinus stenosis, breaking the feedback loop between elevated ICP and stenosis, thus reducing ICP and promoting cerebrospinal fluid outflow. The correction and resolution of flow aberrances can also mitigate or resolve PT symptoms. While venous sinus stenting remains an emerging field, initial results are promising. Further research is needed to refine patient selection criteria and evaluate the long-term efficacy of stenting as compared to traditional treatments., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Neurosensory hearing loss is well-documented in chronic autoimmune conditions such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, the literature lacks data on the prevalence and characteristics of hearing impairment in Takayasu's arteritis (TAK). In this cross-sectional study, our principal objective was to systematically assess the auditory function of individuals diagnosed with TAK, against SLE patients and healthy controls (HC)., Methods: Age and gender matched TAK and SLE patients followed up in a tertiary centre along with healthy controls were included in a two-phase study. In the first phase, a questionnaire on ENT symptoms was administered to the patient (TAK: n=104 and SLE: n= 151) and HC (n=174) groups. In the second phase, patients (TAK: n=53 and SLE: n=33) and HC (n=45) underwent audiometric tests., Results: The questionnaire survey revealed that both TAK and SLE patients reported hearing loss (27.9%, 25.8%, 7.4%, p<0.001), tinnitus (49%, 35.8%, 13.8%, p<0.001) and vertigo (46.2%, 33.8%, 16.7%, p<0.001) at significantly higher rates than HC. Audiometry results indicated that both TAK (30.2%) and SLE patients (18.2%) had increased hearing loss compared to HC (8.9%), however, only TAK patients were found to have significantly increased risk in age adjusted logistic regression analysis (OR= 3.915, 95%CI: 1.179-12.998, p=0.026). Hearing loss was mainly neurosensory in all groups. TAK patients were affected at both low (<6000 Hz) and high (>6000 Hz) frequencies, whereas SLE patients were affected only at high frequencies. Hearing loss was significantly associated only with older age. No association was observed with the anatomical location of vascular involvement or history of stroke., Conclusions: Our study reveals an increased prevalence of hearing loss in TAK. Further research is crucial to uncover the underlying causes.

Background: To ensure that subjective tinnitus patients develop positive attitudes toward tele-audiology., Aims/objectives: This study investigates the appropriateness of the internet-based software in patients with subjective tinnitus., Material and Methods: Patients between the ages of 19 and 59 applying to the clinic with the subjective tinnitus filled in Tinnitus Handicap Index (THI) and Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS). Visual Numeric Scale (VNS) was applied to the patients to complaint of tinnitus. Parameter measurements related to hearing and tinnitus were performed clinically. After the evaluations, 54 participants were divided into two groups to receive the 'Basic Information Material Service' (BIMS) face-to-face and online. Afterwards, THI and VNS were used to determine the current status., Results: There was no significant difference between the groups that received BIMS with 2 different methods ( p > .05). A significant difference was found in the scores before and after BIMS in terms of THI and VNS ( p < .05). A strong negative correlation was found between the duration of tinnitus and the change in THI. In addition, there is a stronger-negative relationship between the number of centers consulted and the informational benefit revealed by the scales., Conclusions and Significance: Online intervention is as effective as face-to-face interaction in the management of tinnitus.

The case study explores COVID-19 vaccination connection to tinnitus and hyperacusis, considering its onset and exacerbation post vaccination. The subject is a 47-year-old woman with a history of bilateral tinnitus, and her hearing history was tracked from 2014 to 2023. An intense episode of tinnitus occurred in 2021, distinct from previous experiences post COVID-19 vaccination, second dose. Symptoms manifested as sudden onset of hyperacusis, pronounced "roar" type tinnitus, and a sudden decline in hearing. Audiometric results showed reduce thresholds in low frequencies and lower speech scores in the left ear. This escalation significantly affects speech understanding in group conditions and noisy environments. There was a gradual improvement in tinnitus and hyperacusis severity, but the subject has a greater problem with speech understanding. The subject's journey involved visits to specialists, multiple testing including neuroimaging, naturopath consultations, and anxiety medication. It emphasizes the importance of healthcare practitioners recognizing and documenting these issues and need for timely multidisciplinary intervention and support. Further research is necessary to better understand the relationship between COVID-19, vaccination, and auditory symptoms.

Introduction: Tinnitus is a frequent condition that indicates the sensation of sound in the absence of a corresponding external stimulus and can significantly impair the quality of life. The main risk factor for developing tinnitus is hearing loss. The diagnosis of tinnitus is based on history, assessment of tinnitus severity, clinical examination, and audiological tests. The main purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between the presence and level of hearing loss and the characteristics of tinnitus in patients with bilateral subjective tinnitus., Methods: Total number of 50 participants, 20 men, and 30 women were included in the research. Demographic data, data on hearing impairment obtained by tone audiometry, and data on difficulties caused by tinnitus obtained in two questionnaires - Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) and Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) were used., Results: Age above 30 years is significantly associated with tinnitus with hearing loss. Hearing impairment is also significantly more often associated with an auditory TFI index >6.7, a total THI index >20, and an emotional THI index >3. Hearing loss was noted in 76% of patients., Conclusion: Tinnitus represents a significant burden for patients, therefore it is important to assess the impact of tinnitus on daily activities and quality of life.

Background: One of the techniques available through Social Security healthcare organizations to assist the government in the implementation of social distancing without restricting patients access to particular health treatments is primary healthcare Tinnitus Teleconsulting. The purpose of this research is to gather data on how well the City of South Jakarta's primary medical care Audiology Teleconsulting strategy was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic., Method: This study uses a qualitative research method and was conducted during November 2022-Mei 2023 at the City of South Jakarta Primary Health Care, the social security agency of health's South Jakarta Branch, and the social security agency of health's Primary Health Care Guarantee Division at the Head Office. Data collection techniques were through Focus Group Discussions, in-depth interviews with key informants, and document review., Results: The results showed that most of the informants already knew the process and output of FKTP Tinnitus Teleconsulting performance; only a few FKTPs did not understand the process and output of policy performance, so even though they acknowledged that they had implemented it, there were no documents recorded in the logbook or electronically recorded patient medical data through the social security agency's health care application., Conclusion: The findings of this study can be used by FKTP and other district or city social security agencies of health to improve the performance achievement of FKTP Tinnitus Teleconsulting implementation.

Objective: Consistent symptom reporting for conditions like tinnitus that do not have an associated sign is critical for evaluating severity and intervention effectiveness, and for interpreting research findings. There is little research examining reporting of tinnitus and hearing difficulty over time. We address this here by comparing reported hearing difficulty and tinnitus at two time-points. Design: A cross-sectional study comparing symptom reporting in March 2019 and August/September 2021 using data from two online surveys of the same cohort. Although each survey was designed to address a different question, both asked about symptoms of tinnitus and hearing difficulties and enabled this exploratory analysis. Study sample: 6881 members of the UK general public aged 18+ years. Results: Inconsistent reporting was evident - many participants who reported experiencing tinnitus and/or hearing difficulties in 2019, said in 2021 that they had never had such symptoms before. Additionally, reports of new tinnitus/hearing difficulties in 2021 were unexpectedly high, equating to 18-month incidence rates of 13.6% and 11.7%, respectively. Conclusions: Psychosocial factors, expectations and context impact symptom reporting. This should be considered when treating patients and interpreting research findings. Using real-time data collection methods could thus provide a better understanding of experiences of tinnitus and hearing.

Introduction: American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis (ATL) treatment is based on pentavalent antimonials (Sb5+), but these drugs have been associated to several adverse effects. Hearing loss and tinnitus during treatment with meglumine antimoniate (MA) have already been reported. This study aimed to describe the usefulness of self-reporting of hearing loss and tinnitus in diagnosing MA-induced ototoxicity., Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was conducted with 102 patients with parasitological diagnosis of ATL, treated with different MA schemes. The presence of clinical auditory toxicity was defined as the emergence or worsening of self-reporting hearing loss and/or tinnitus during monitoring. Measures of sensitivity, specificity, and the positive and negative predictive value of the patient's self-reporting of hearing loss and tinnitus in relation to the result of the audiometric test (considered the gold standard) were calculated., Results: The age of the evaluated patients ranged from 15 to 81 years, with a median of 41 years, and most were male (73.5%). Seventy-five patients (73.5%) had cutaneous leishmaniasis and 27 (26.5%) mucosal leishmaniasis. Eighty-six patients (84.3%) received intramuscular (IM) treatment and 16 (15.7%) were treated with intralesional MA. During treatment, 18 (17,6%) had tinnitus and 7 (6,9%) had complaint of hearing loss. 53 (52%) patients had cochlear toxicity confirmed by tone threshold audiometry and high frequency audiometry, from which 60% received a dose of 20 mg Sb5+/kg/day (p = 0.015) and 96.2% were treated with IM MA (p = 0.001). Tinnitus has greater specificity and positive predictive value than hearing loss, with a low number of false positives, but with a high false negative value., Conclusion: Although the large number of false negatives suggests that self-report of hearing loss or tinnitus cannot be considered a good screening test for referring the patient to an audiometry, the low number of false positives suggests the need to value the patient's complaint for referral. Otherwise, this study reinforces the importance of audiological monitoring during treatment with MA, especially in those patients with self-reporting of hearing loss or tinnitus when treated with 20 mg Sb5+/kg/day via IM., Competing Interests: No. The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Duarte et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Tinnitus is a bothersome condition associated with various symptoms. However, the mechanisms of tinnitus are still uncertain, and a standardized assessment of the diagnostic criteria for tinnitus is required. We aimed to reach a consensus on diagnosing tinnitus with professional experts by conducting a Delphi study with systematic review of the literature., Methods: Twenty-six experts in managing tinnitus in Korea were recruited, and a two-round modified Delphi study was performed online. The experts evaluated the level of agreement of potential criteria for tinnitus using a scale of 1-9. After the survey, a consensus meeting was held to establish agreement on the results obtained from the Delphi process. Consensus was defined when over 70% of the participants scored 7-9 (agreement) and fewer than 15% scored 1-3 (disagreement). To analyze the responses of the Delphi survey, the content validity ratio and Kendall's coefficient of concordance were evaluated., Results: Consensus was reached for 22 of the 38 statements. For the definition of tinnitus, 10 out of 17 statements reached consensus, with three statements achieving complete agreement including; 1) Tinnitus is a conscious perception of an auditory sensation in the absence of a corresponding external stimulus, 2) Tinnitus can affect one's quality of life, and 3) Tinnitus can be associated with hearing disorders including sensorineural hearing loss, vestibular schwannoma, Meniere's disease, otosclerosis, and others. For the classification of tinnitus, 11 out of 18 statements reached consensus. The participants highly agreed with statements such as; 1) Vascular origin is expected in pulse-synchronous tinnitus, and 2) Tinnitus can be divided into acute or chronic tinnitus. Among three statements on the diagnostic tests for tinnitus only Statement 3, "There are no reliable biomarkers for sensory or emotional factors of tinnitus." reached consensus. All participants agreed to perform pure-tone audiometry and tinnitus questionnaires, including the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and Tinnitus Questionnaire., Conclusion: We used a modified Delphi method to establish a consensus-based definition, a classification, and diagnostic tests for tinnitus. The expert panel reached agreement for several statements, with a high level of consensus. This may provide practical information for clinicians in managing tinnitus., Competing Interests: The authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose., (© 2024 The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences.)

Background: Numerous online videos are available on sound therapy as a treatment modality for tinnitus, but it is uncertain if these videos are adequate for patient education. This study aims to evaluate the quality and reliability of tinnitus sound therapy videos on YouTube for patient education., Methods: YouTube videos were searched using keywords related to "tinnitus sound therapy". The top 100 videos were analyzed after excluding those were repetitive, irrelevant, less than 3 min, or not in English. After categorising the videos based on their authorship and content, the video power index (VPI) was relied to determine their popularity. The DISCERN questionnaire (DISCERN), the Global Quality Score (GQS), the Journal of the American Medical Association benchmark criteria (JAMA), and the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT) were utilized to evaluate the quality, transparency, and patient education., Results: Over half (56%) of the videos were published by professional organizations. A total of 93% of them contained sound only. Only 17% followed the recommendations of the Clinical Management of Tinnitus Guidelines, and 3% provided literature referenced by the video. A variety types of sound were used, among which music accounting for 35%. The videos were highly popular with an average views of 7,335,003.28 ± 24,174,764.02 and an average VPI of 4,610.33 ± 11,531.10. However, their quality was poor (the median scores: 38/80 for DISCERN, 2/5 for GQS, 1/4 for JAMA, and 50%/100% for PEMAT). There was a negative correlation between the popularity of the videos and their quality, indicated by PEMAT: -0.207, DISCERN: -0.307, GQS: -0.302, and JAMA: -0.233. Several dimensions of the videos require improvement, especially actionability, treatment options, and transparency with lacks of 100%, 63%, and 75% respectively., Conclusion: The tinnitus sound therapy videos available on YouTube exhibit low quality. Nevertheless, they also hold potential for health education if refined and utilized suitably., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© 2024 Huang et al.)

Blast exposure causes serious complications, the most common of which are ear-related symptoms such as hearing loss and tinnitus. The blast shock waves can cause neurodegeneration of the auditory pathway in the brainstem, as well as the cochlea, which is the primary receptor for hearing, leading to blast-induced tinnitus. However, it is still unclear which lesion is more dominant in triggering tinnitus, the peripheral cochlea or the brainstem lesion owing to the complex pathophysiology and the difficulty in objectively measuring tinnitus. Recently, gap detection tests have been developed and are potentially well-suited for determining the presence of tinnitus. In this study, we investigated whether the peripheral cochlea or the central nervous system has a dominant effect on the generation of tinnitus using a blast-exposed mouse model with or without earplugs, which prevent cochlear damage from a blast transmitted via the external auditory canal. The results showed that the earplug (+) group, in which the cochlea was neither physiologically nor histologically damaged, showed a similar extent of tinnitus behavior in a gap prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle reflex test as the earplug (-) group, in which the explosion caused a cochlear synaptic loss in the inner hair cells and demyelination of auditory neurons. In contrast, both excitatory synapses labeled with VGLUT-1 and inhibitory synapses labeled with GAD65 were reduced in the ventral cochlear nucleus, and demyelination in the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body was observed in both groups. These disruptions significantly correlated with the presence of tinnitus behavior regardless of cochlear damage. These results indicate that the lesion in the brainstem could be dominant to the cochlear lesion in the development of tinnitus following blast exposure.

Background: Various smartphone applications (apps) for people with tinnitus are available and promise tinnitus relief. Yet, it is difficult for people suffering from tinnitus and healthcare professionals to estimate their quality, potential, or risks. The current study aims to generate an overview of available tinnitus apps in the German language and to offer orientation for research and healthcare providers., Method: The most prominent stores were searched systematically (November 2020-April 2021; Google Play Store and Apple App Store). Apps specifically developed for tinnitus were evaluated by two independent raters using multiple approaches: a) a quality screening was performed using the German version of the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS-G), b) intervention components were assessed using a newly developed list of categories, and c) implemented strategies for active tinnitus management were analyzed using behavior change techniques (BCTs)., Results: The search yielded 1073 apps, of which 21 apps were analyzed. The apps' overall quality as assessed by MARS‑G was average (M = 3.37, SD = 039). A lot of apps offered sounds (n = 18) and information (n = 9) or assessed tinnitus characteristics (n = 13). Out of 93 BCTs, 24 were identified at least once. Only one app was evaluated in non-randomized trials., Conclusion: Although a variety of apps are available, most of them focus on a few intervention components (e.g., sounds or information). Therefore, apps do not exploit their potential to impart important evidence-based content for tinnitus management. The app evaluation using multiple approaches points out potential for improvement., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: Neurofibromatosis type 2-related schwannomatosis is a genetic disease characterized by the development of bilateral vestibular schwannomas, ependymomas, meningiomas, and cataracts. Mild to profound hearing loss and tinnitus are common symptoms reported by individuals with neurofibromatosis type 2. While tinnitus is known to have a significant and negative impact on the quality of life of individuals from the general population, the impact on individuals with neurofibromatosis type 2 is unknown. Consensus regarding the selection of suitable patient-reported outcome measures for assessment could advance further research into tinnitus in neurofibromatosis type 2 patients. The purpose of this work is to achieve a consensus recommendation by the Response Evaluation in Neurofibromatosis and Schwannomatosis International Collaboration for patient-reported outcome measures used to evaluate quality of life in the domain of tinnitus for neurofibromatosis type 2 clinical trials., Methods: The Response Evaluation in Neurofibromatosis and Schwannomatosis Patient-Reported Outcomes Communication Subgroup systematically evaluated patient-reported outcome measures of quality of life in the domain of tinnitus for individuals with neurofibromatosis type 2 using previously published Response Evaluation in Neurofibromatosis and Schwannomatosis rating procedures. Of the 19 identified patient-reported outcome measures, 3 measures were excluded because they were not validated as an outcome measure or could not have been used as a single outcome measure for a clinical trial. Sixteen published patient-reported outcome measures for the domain of tinnitus were scored and compared on their participant characteristics, item content, psychometric properties, and feasibility for use in clinical trials., Results: The Tinnitus Functional Index was identified as the most highly rated measure for the assessment of tinnitus in populations with neurofibromatosis type 2, due to strengths in the areas of item content, psychometric properties, feasibility, and available scores., Discussion: Response Evaluation in Neurofibromatosis and Schwannomatosis currently recommends the Tinnitus Functional Index for the assessment of tinnitus in neurofibromatosis type 2 clinical trials., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Tinnitus is a heritable, highly prevalent auditory disorder treated by multiple medical specialties. Previous GWAS indicated high genetic correlations between tinnitus and hearing loss, with little indication of differentiating signals. We present a GWAS meta-analysis, triple previous sample sizes, and expand to non-European ancestries. GWAS in 596,905 Million Veteran Program subjects identified 39 tinnitus loci, and identified genes related to neuronal synapses and cochlear structural support. Applying state-of-the-art analytic tools, we confirm a large number of shared variants, but also a distinct genetic architecture of tinnitus, with higher polygenicity and large proportion of variants not shared with hearing difficulty. Tissue-expression analysis for tinnitus infers broad enrichment across most brain tissues, in contrast to hearing difficulty. Finally, tinnitus is not only correlated with hearing loss, but also with a spectrum of psychiatric disorders, providing potential new avenues for treatment. This study establishes tinnitus as a distinct disorder separate from hearing difficulties., (© 2024. This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply.)

Tinnitus is a heterogeneous condition of hearing a rattling sound when there is no auditory stimulus. This rattling sound is associated with abnormal synchronous oscillations in auditory and non-auditory cortical areas. Since tinnitus is a highly heterogeneous condition with no objective detection criteria, it is necessary to search for indicators that can be compared between and within participants for diagnostic purposes. This study introduces heterogeneous though comparable indicators of tinnitus through investigation of spontaneous fluctuations in resting-state brain dynamics. The proposed approach uses nonlinear measures of chaos theory, to detect tinnitus and cross correlation patterns to reflect many of the previously reported neural correlates of tinnitus. These indicators may serve as effective measures of tinnitus risk even at early ages before any symptom is reported. The approach quantifies differences in oscillatory brain dynamics of tinnitus and normal subjects. It demonstrates that the left temporal areas of subjects with tinnitus exhibit larger lyapunov exponent indicating irregularity of brain dynamics in these regions. More complex dynamics is further recognized in tinnitus cases through entropy. We use this evidence to distinguish tinnitus patients from normal participants. Besides, we illustrate that certain anticorrelation patterns appear in these nonlinear measures across temporal and frontal areas in the brain perhaps corresponding to increased/decreased connectivity in certain brain networks and a shift in the balance of excitation and inhibition in tinnitus. Additionally, the main correlations are lost in tinnitus participants compared to control group suggesting involvement of distinct neural mechanisms in generation and persistence of tinnitus., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Naghdabadi, Jahed. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: The aim of this study was to explore the impact of sleep quality on cognitive function in patients with chronic subjective tinnitus., Methods: The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MoCA) were used to assess sleep quality and cognitive function in patients with chronic subjective tinnitus, sleep disorder patients (SD), and normal controls (NC). The tinnitus evaluation questionnaire (TEQ) and tinnitus loudness were used to assess the severity in patients with chronic subjective tinnitus. Tinnitus patients were divided into two groups based on PSQI results: "tinnitus with sleep disorder (TwSD)" and "tinnitus without sleep disorder (TnSD)." The MoCA scores in TwSD and TnSD groups were compared with those in SD and NC groups, and the correlation between PSQI, TEQ, tinnitus loudness, and MoCA scores in subjective tinnitus patients were analyzed., Results: Whether TwSD group or TnSD group, the MoCA score was significantly lower than those in the NC group and SD group. Meanwhile, there was no significant difference between TwSD and TnSD groups in MoCA score, and PSQI, TEQ, and tinnitus loudness were not significantly correlated with MoCA., Conclusion: Subjective tinnitus may be an independent risk factor for cognitive impairment. The underlying neural mechanisms between subjective tinnitus, sleep disorders, and cognitive impairment need to be further explored and clarified.

One of the main causes of the of the inner ear pathology is a viral infection including SARS-CoV-2 virus. On the other hand the psycho-emotional state of patients also affects patients with hearing loss, tinnitus and dizziness, and an increase in depression and anxiety was revealed during the period of self-isolation. Goal of our study was to analyze cochleovestibular pathology in patients with COVID-19. The study involved 84 patients and the leading complaint was hearing loss - in 70 patients, tinnitus - in 54 patients, dizziness - in 50 patients. In addition, an increased anxiety background was found in patients, as well as signs of depression. Thus, the 2020 pandemic period was a high risk period for patients with inner ear pathology, which may be associated not only with the actual pathological effect of the virus on the auditory and vestibular system, but also with changes in the psycho-emotional status of patients.