Tinnitus and Hearing Survey: A Screening Tool to Differentiate Bothersome Tinnitus From Hearing Difficulties

Headnote

Purpose: Individuals complaining of tinnitus often attribute hearing problems to the tinnitus. In such cases some (or all) of their reported "tinnitus distress" may in fact be caused by trouble communicating due to hearing problems. We developed the Tinnitus and Hearing Survey (THS) as a tool to rapidly differentiate hearing problems from tinnitus problems.

Method: For 2 of our research studies, we administered the THS twice (mean of 16.5 days between tests) to 67 participants who did not receive intervention. These data allow for measures of statistical validation of the THS.

Results: Reliability of the THS was good to excellent regarding internal consistency (a = .86-.94), test-retest reliability (r = .76-.83), and convergent validity between the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (Newman, Jacobson, & Spitzer, 1996; Newman, Sandridge, & Jacobson, 1998) and the A (Tinnitus) subscale of the THS ( r = .78). Factor analysis confirmed that the 2 subscales, A (Tinnitus) and B (Hearing), have strong internal structure, explaining 71.7% of the total variance, and low correlation with each other (r = .46), resulting in a small amount of shared variance (21%).

Conclusion: These results provide evidence that the THS is statistically validated and reliable for use in assisting patients and clinicians in quickly (and collaboratively) determining whether intervention for tinnitus is appropriate.

Tinnitus has been defined as head or ear noise lasting at least 5 min and occurring more than once a week (Dauman & Tyler, 1992). For most people who have tinnitus, the sound is constant or near-constant. Epidemiologic studies reveal that tinnitus is experienced by 10%-15% of the adult populations in different countries (Heller, 2003; Hoffman & Reed, 2004; Shargorodsky, Curhan, & Farwell, 2010). It is often reported that for about 80% of those who experience tinnitus, the tinnitus is not particularly bothersome, and clinical intervention for the tinnitus is not required (Cima, Vlaeyen, Maes, Joore, & Anteunis, 2011; Davis & Refaie, 2000; Jastreboff & Hazell, 1998; Krog, Engdahl, & Tambs, 2010). When intervention for tinnitus is desired by, and appropriate for, a given patient, the amount of intervention provided should depend on the individual's specific needs (Henry, Schechter, et al., 2005; Tyler & Baker, 1983).

Dobie's (2004) multilevel pyramid analogy is helpful in conceptualizing how tinnitus affects people differently (see Figure...