Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways
INTRODUCTION: Although tinnitus is an increasingly common symptom, few studies have assessed its prevalence or incidence among adolescents.PURPOSE: To assess whether the presence of tinnitus in adolescents is associated with minimal hearing damage, evaluated through high-frequency audiometry (HFA),...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Sociedade Brasileira de Fonoaudiologia
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| Series: | CoDAS |
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| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2317-17822015000100005&lng=en&tlng=en |
| _version_ | 1828837112627068928 |
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| author | Tanit Ganz Sanchez Juliana Casseb Oliveira Márcia Akemi Kii Katya Freire Jaci Cota Fernanda Vieira de Moraes |
| author_facet | Tanit Ganz Sanchez Juliana Casseb Oliveira Márcia Akemi Kii Katya Freire Jaci Cota Fernanda Vieira de Moraes |
| author_sort | Tanit Ganz Sanchez |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | INTRODUCTION: Although tinnitus is an increasingly common symptom, few studies have assessed its prevalence or incidence among adolescents.PURPOSE: To assess whether the presence of tinnitus in adolescents is associated with minimal hearing damage, evaluated through high-frequency audiometry (HFA), otoacoustic emission (OAE), and loudness discomfort level (LDL).METHODS: The sample comprised 168 adolescents of a private school (61.3% boys; mean age 14.1 years old; standard deviation=2). All of them completed a questionnaire about tinnitus and hypersensitivity to sounds (sound intolerance), and then underwent otoscopy, pure-tone audiometry, HFA, LDL, transient and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (TOAE and DPOAE), and tinnitus pitch/loudness matching (the latter only in those with tinnitus). Participants were later divided into three groups: with no tinnitus (n=73, 43.4%), with sporadic tinnitus (n=47, 28%), and with constant tinnitus (n=48, 28.6%).RESULTS: No significant difference was observed between the groups regarding audiometry thresholds in frequencies from 0.25 to 16 kHz, or TOAE and DPOAE. However, the LDL in adolescents with constant tinnitus was significantly lower than that in other groups, suggesting hypersensitivity to sounds.CONCLUSION: There was no evidence of minimal hearing damage in the audiometry and OAE. Nonetheless, the decreased LDL in adolescents with constant tinnitus suggests that their auditory system is more sensitive. Therefore, this may be the first sign of vulnerability to sounds. Future medium- to long-term monitoring of these students may show whether they will begin a process of functional impairment, altering hearing thresholds, and OAE. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T18:34:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8a9ca758cdbc4c2b9f061e4fa86732b3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2317-1782 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T18:34:29Z |
| publisher | Sociedade Brasileira de Fonoaudiologia |
| record_format | Article |
| series | CoDAS |
| spelling | doaj.art-8a9ca758cdbc4c2b9f061e4fa86732b32022-12-22T00:15:50ZengSociedade Brasileira de FonoaudiologiaCoDAS2317-178227151210.1590/2317-1782/20152013045S2317-17822015000100005Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathwaysTanit Ganz SanchezJuliana Casseb OliveiraMárcia Akemi KiiKatya FreireJaci CotaFernanda Vieira de MoraesINTRODUCTION: Although tinnitus is an increasingly common symptom, few studies have assessed its prevalence or incidence among adolescents.PURPOSE: To assess whether the presence of tinnitus in adolescents is associated with minimal hearing damage, evaluated through high-frequency audiometry (HFA), otoacoustic emission (OAE), and loudness discomfort level (LDL).METHODS: The sample comprised 168 adolescents of a private school (61.3% boys; mean age 14.1 years old; standard deviation=2). All of them completed a questionnaire about tinnitus and hypersensitivity to sounds (sound intolerance), and then underwent otoscopy, pure-tone audiometry, HFA, LDL, transient and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (TOAE and DPOAE), and tinnitus pitch/loudness matching (the latter only in those with tinnitus). Participants were later divided into three groups: with no tinnitus (n=73, 43.4%), with sporadic tinnitus (n=47, 28%), and with constant tinnitus (n=48, 28.6%).RESULTS: No significant difference was observed between the groups regarding audiometry thresholds in frequencies from 0.25 to 16 kHz, or TOAE and DPOAE. However, the LDL in adolescents with constant tinnitus was significantly lower than that in other groups, suggesting hypersensitivity to sounds.CONCLUSION: There was no evidence of minimal hearing damage in the audiometry and OAE. Nonetheless, the decreased LDL in adolescents with constant tinnitus suggests that their auditory system is more sensitive. Therefore, this may be the first sign of vulnerability to sounds. Future medium- to long-term monitoring of these students may show whether they will begin a process of functional impairment, altering hearing thresholds, and OAE.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2317-17822015000100005&lng=en&tlng=enZumbidoAdolescenteAudiometriaHiperacusia |
| spellingShingle | Tanit Ganz Sanchez Juliana Casseb Oliveira Márcia Akemi Kii Katya Freire Jaci Cota Fernanda Vieira de Moraes Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways CoDAS Zumbido Adolescente Audiometria Hiperacusia |
| title | Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways |
| title_full | Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways |
| title_fullStr | Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways |
| title_short | Tinnitus in adolescents: the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways |
| title_sort | tinnitus in adolescents the start of the vulnerability of the auditory pathways |
| topic | Zumbido Adolescente Audiometria Hiperacusia |
| url | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2317-17822015000100005&lng=en&tlng=en |
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