The International Tinnitus Journal

Impact of Tinnitus on Quality of Life, Loudness and Pitch Match, and High-Frequency Audiometry

Our objective was to compare quality of life, high-frequency audiometry, and loudness-pitch match in individuals with tinnitus with and without hearing loss. We divided 52 individuals into two groups: one with hearing impairment (HI; n = 24) and the other with no hearing loss (NL; n = 28). All participants underwent loudness-pitch match and highfrequency audiometry and responded to the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) and World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL) questionnaires. On high-frequency audiometry, older individuals required 77.15% more intensity than did young individuals. On the THI questionnaire, individuals in the NL group exhibited mild handicap, whereas those in the HI group exhibited moderate handicap. On the WHOQOL questionnaires, the HI group demonstrated greater impairment on the physical and psychological domains than did the NL group. Individuals with HI experienced greater discomfort with tinnitus. On high-frequency audiometry, individuals with tinnitus and HI exhibited higher thresholds, with complete hearing loss at some frequencies. The WHOQOL and THI questionnaires revealed that individuals with HI experienced a poorer quality of life than did those with normal hearing.