Chronic, Moderate Tinnitus Interferes with Cognitive
Abilities
Editor: A recent study concludes that people with chronic, moderate
tinnitus don't perform as well on some tests of cognitive function as
people without tinnitus. Here's the report.
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Study Reports Impact on Selective Attention, Long-Term Memory.
Individuals with chronic, moderate tinnitus do more poorly on demanding
working memory and attention tests than those without tinnitus,
according to a recent study.
Newswise - Individuals with chronic, moderate tinnitus do more poorly
on demanding working memory and attention tests than those without
tinnitus, according to a recent study. However, on less complex tasks,
no significant differences were found, suggesting that tinnitus has no
effect on tasks that involve more involuntary, automatic responses.
"Tinnitus and Its Effect on Working Memory and Attention,"
appears in the just released Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing
Research. The study adds to the growing body of research on the
relationship between tinnitus and cognition, demonstrating an
association between tinnitus and reduced cognitive function. The
research has important implications for helping people with tinnitus
approach new or difficult tasks that require strategic and conscious
control.
"We wanted to learn more about the ways in which chronic
tinnitus disrupts cognitive performance," said Susan Rossiter, a
former research Masters student at the MARCS Auditory Laboratories and
University of Western Sydney, South Penrith, New South Wales, Australia.
"Our goal is to use this knowledge to develop management strategies
that will help minimize this disruption."
"Ms. Rossiter's research project was our first foray into
tinnitus," said fellow researcher and Associate Professor Catherine
Stevens of the MARCS Auditory Laboratories. She added, "Our most
recent research has also investigated other important variables such as
depression and hearing loss."
Dr. Gary Walker, also of the MARCS Auditory Laboratories added,
"Our ultimate goal is to use this knowledge to develop management
strategies that will help minimize disruption."
Thirty-eight people participated as subjects. Nineteen, who were ages
34-63 years, came from English-speaking backgrounds, and had constant,
moderate to severe tinnitus made up the experimental group. The control
group also had 19 participants. They matched individuals in the
experimental group by age, educational level, occupation, and verbal IQ.
Tinnitus is the perception of sound in the absence of auditory
stimulation. Described as a "ringing in the ears" or
"buzzing" or "whooshing" sound, it can be temporary,
intermittent, or permanent. Although its exact cause is often unknown,
tinnitus can be a symptom of hearing loss, allergies, or exposure to
loud noise or ototoxic medicines. Past research has shown that it can be
accompanied by anxiety, insomnia, problems with auditory perception, and
poor general and mental health.
ASHA is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing
association for more than 120,000 audiologists, speech-language
pathologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists. Audiologists
specialize in preventing and assessing hearing disorders as well as
providing audiologic treatment including hearing aids. Speech-language
pathologists identify, assess, and treat speech and language problems
including swallowing disorders. For more information on tinnitus or
other hearing disorders, go to http://www.asha.org or call
1-800-638-Talk.
