The effect of silence on tinnitus perception

Otolaryngology--Head and Neck …, 2008

The purpose of this study was to study the effect of attention and sustained silence on the emergence of auditory phantom perception in normal-hearing adults. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: While sitting in a sound booth, 66 volunteers (age range, 18-65; mean age, 37.3) performed 3 experiments of 5 minutes each, consecutively and randomly presented. Two deviated attention from auditory system (Hanoi and visual attention experiments), and 1 drove attention to the auditory system (auditory attention). After each experiment, participants were asked about their auditory and visual perception. No sound or light change was given at any moment. RESULTS: Of the participants, 19.7% experienced tinnitus during Hanoi, 45.5% during visual attention, and 68.2% during auditory attention experiment, with no significant differences for studied variables. CONCLUSION: Tinnitus-like perceptions may occur in a nonclinical population in a silent environment. Concomitant auditory attention plays an important role on the emergence of tinnitus.

Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, 2008

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of silence on the appearance of auditory phantom perceptions in normal-hearing adults, with specific emphasis on the influence of suggestion. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Fifty-three normal-hearing young Caucasian adults were subjected to two 4-minute sessions in an anechoic sound chamber. In the first session the chamber was empty; in the second session the chamber contained a nonfunctioning loudspeaker. At the end of each session, subjects had to indicate which sounds they perceived from a list of 23 different sounds. RESULTS: When the loudspeaker was not present, 83 percent of the participants reported that they experienced at least one sound, and the percentage increased to 92 percent when the loudspeaker was present. CONCLUSION: These results confirm the emergence of tinnituslike perceptions in a nonclinical population in a silent environment and indicate that suggestive mechanisms play only a minor role in their generation.

Rehabilitation Psychology, 2009

Objective: Masking by the use of sounds has been one of the most commonly applied means of coping with tinnitus. The ability to control auditory stimulation represents a potentially important process involved in tinnitus masking strategies. Little is, however, known about the consequences of control on tinnitus experience. The present study investigated the effects of control of background sounds (type and loudness) on perceived intrusiveness of tinnitus and cognitive performance. Design: Using an experimental design with a series of trials, participants with clinically significant tinnitus (N ϭ 35) were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 experimental manipulation conditions (control of sounds vs. no control of sounds). Measures: Self-reported tinnitus interference and the Digit-Symbol subtest served as dependent measures. Results: Latent growth curve modeling showed that individuals assigned to the condition with control exhibited faster growth rates on tinnitus interference (increased interference) and demonstrated slower rates of improvement on cognitive performance measures over trials compared to individuals assigned to the condition with no control. Conclusion: These results suggest that efforts to control tinnitus through sounds can be associated with increased disability in individuals with tinnitus.

Tinnitus-the perception of sound in the absence of an actual external sound-represents a symptom of an underlying condition rather than a single disease. Several theories have been proposed to explain the mechanisms underlying tinnitus. Tinnitus generators are theoretically located in the auditory pathway, and such generators and various mechanisms occurring in the peripheral auditory system have been explained in terms of spontaneous otoacoustic emissions, edge theory, and discordant theory. Those present in the central auditory system have been explained in terms of the dorsal cochlear nucleus, the auditory plasticity theory, the crosstalk theory, the somatosensory system, and the limbic and autonomic nervous systems. Treatments for tinnitus include pharmacotherapy, cognitive and behavioral therapy, sound therapy, music therapy, tinnitus retraining therapy, massage and stretching, and electrical suppression. This paper reviews the characteristics, causes, mechanisms, and treatments of tinnitus.

Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience

The Lancet Neurology, 2013

Tinnitus is the perception of sound in the absence of a corresponding external acoustic stimulus. With prevalence ranging from 10% to 15%, tinnitus is a common disorder. Many people habituate to the phantom sound, but tinnitus severely impairs quality of life of about 1-2% of all people. Tinnitus has traditionally been regarded as an otological disorder, but advances in neuroimaging methods and development of animal models have increasingly shifted the perspective towards its neuronal correlates. Increased neuronal fi ring rate, enhanced neuronal synchrony, and changes in the tonotopic organisation are recorded in central auditory pathways in reaction to deprived auditory input and represent-together with changes in non-auditory brain areas-the neuronal correlate of tinnitus. Assessment of patients includes a detailed case history, measurement of hearing function, quantifi cation of tinnitus severity, and identifi cation of causal factors, associated symptoms, and comorbidities. Most widely used treatments for tinnitus involve counselling, and best evidence is available for cognitive behavioural therapy. New pathophysiological insights have prompted the development of innovative brain-based treatment approaches to directly target the neuronal correlates of tinnitus. Lancet Neurol 2013; 12: 920-30 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (B Langguth MD, P M Kreuzer MD) and Interdisciplinary Tinnitus Center (B Langguth, P M Kreuzer, References 1 Krog NH, Engdahl B, Tambs K. The association between tinnitus and mental health in a general population sample: results from the HUNT Study. J Psychosom Res 2010; 69: 289-98. 2 Axelsson A, Ringdahl A. Tinnitus-a study of its prevalence and characteristics. Br J Audiol 1989; 23: 53-62. 3 Pilgram R. Tinnitus in der BRD. HNO aktuell 1999; 7: 261-65. 4 Shargorodsky J, Curhan GC, Farwell WR. Prevalence and characteristics of tinnitus among US adults. Am J Med 2010;

International Journal of Audiology, 2016

Objective: Normative otoacoustic emission (OAE) suppression values are currently lacking and the role of cochlear efferent innervation in tinnitus is controversial. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between tinnitus and medial olivocochlear bundle (MOCB) malfunction. Potential suppression amplitude cutoff criteria that could differentiate participants with tinnitus from those without were sought. Design: Mean suppression amplitudes of transient evoked OAEs and distortion product OAEs by contralateral white noise (50 dBSL) were recorded. Six mean suppression amplitudes criteria were validated as possible cutoff points. Study sample: The population consisted of normal hearing (n ¼ 78) or presbycusic adults (n ¼ 19) with tinnitus or without (n ¼ 28 and 13, respectively) chronic tinnitus (in total, n ¼ 138 78 females/60males, aged 49 ± 14 years). Results: Participants with mean suppression values lower than 0.5-1 dBSPL seem to present a high probability to report tinnitus (specificity 88-97%). On the other hand, participants with mean suppression values larger than 2-2.5dBSPL seem to present a high probability of the absence of tinnitus (sensitivity 87-99%). Correlations were stronger among participants with bilateral presence or absence of tinnitus. Conclusions: This study seem to confirm an association between tinnitus and low suppression amplitudes (51 dBSPL), which might evolve into an objective examination tool, supplementary to conventional audiological testing.

International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR) ISSN: 2319-7064 SJIF (2022): 7.942 Volume 12 Issue 6, June 2023 www.ijsr.net , 2023

Objective: The objective of this cohort study was to conduct a comprehensive investigation of diverse facets of tinnitus, encompassing demographic and clinical features, measurement methodologies, tinnitus attributes, and their correlations with psychological distress and quality of life. Methods: A group of 100 individuals who were diagnosed with tinnitus and were aged ranged from 25 to 75 years was chosen from a tertiary care center. The study's inclusion criteria encompassed a willingness to participate for the complete two-year duration, while individuals with severe psychiatric conditions, cognitive impairments, or unrelated significant hearing disorders were excluded. The assessment of tinnitus characteristics involved the utilization of measurement tools such as Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE), self-reporting methods, and audiometric tests. Data were gathered at regular intervals of six months to account for possible variations over the course of time. Results: A significant proportion of the subjects exhibited tinnitus characterized by high-frequency pitch, while roughly 56% of the sample reported moderate loudness levels. The study found a robust positive association between the loudness of tinnitus and psychological distress. Additionally, tinnitus pitch demonstrated a noteworthy positive correlation with psychological distress and a moderately positive correlation with quality of life. The investigation additionally disclosed connections between the duration of tinnitus and the quality of life; however, the associations exhibited low strength and lacked statistical significance. Conclusion: The current cohort study offers significant insights into the features of tinnitus and their correlations with psychological distress and quality of life. The results underscore the significance of utilizing thorough evaluation methodologies, such as Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE), to achieve precise quantification of tinnitus attributes. The findings of the study provide valuable insights into the effects of tinnitus on individuals and have significant implications for the clinical management of tinnitus. Subsequent investigations ought to concentrate on devising interventions that are tailored to address distinct tinnitus attributes and examining the interplay between tinnitus and concurrent ailments. In general, this research contributes to the understanding of tinnitus, providing valuable insights for clinical application and directing future investigations in this area.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2010

Tinnitus disturbs lives and negatively affects the quality of life of about 2% of the adult world population. Research has shown that the main cause of tinnitus is hearing loss. To analyze a possible association of the degree of hearing loss with the severity of tinnitus, we have performed a retrospective study using admission data on 531 patients suffering from chronic tinnitus. We have found that 83% of our tinnitus patients had a high frequency hearing loss corresponding to a noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). There was a significant correlation between the mean hearing loss and the tinnitus loudness (p < 0.0001). Interestingly, patients suffering from decompensated chronic tinnitus had a greater degree of hearing loss than the patients with compensated form of tinnitus. In addition, we demonstrate that the degree of hearing loss positively correlates with the two subscales ("intrusiveness" and "auditory perceptional difficulties") of the Tinnitus Questionnaire. Our retrospective study provides indirect evidence supporting the hypothesis that the degree of noise-induced hearing loss influences the severity of tinnitus.

Acta …, 2012

Tinnitus represents one of the most frequent symptoms observed in the general population in association with different pathologies, although often its etiology remains unclear. Objective of this work is to evidence the main aspects concerning epidemiology, causes, audiological characteristics and psychological consequences of tinnitus.