Prevalence of Somatosensory Tinnitus in Veterans With Tinnitus.

OBJECTIVES

The primary objective was to estimate the prevalence of somatosensory tinnitus (ST) among Veterans with tinnitus.

DESIGN

Three hundred four Veterans with tinnitus were phone screened for ST by performing and reporting on a series of head/neck/jaw maneuvers. A random sample of 12 individuals who screened positive and five who screened negative attended an in-person visit to confirm the presence/absence of ST.

RESULTS

Of the 304 Veterans, 12 could not complete the screening maneuvers, 205 screened positive, and 87 screened negative. A Bayesian estimator that combines phone screening and in-person exam results establishes the prevalence of ST among Veterans with tinnitus at 56% with a 90% Bayesian confidence interval of 45% to 65%.

CONCLUSIONS

At least half of Veterans with tinnitus have ST, suggesting that a sizable at-need population exists. Treatment addressing the biomechanical component has the potential to improve tinnitus symptoms.