Sleep Disturbances Associated With Tinnitus: Reduce the Maximal Intensity of Tinnitus

The high prevalence together with the serious impact of sleep disturbances assessed in tinnitus patients urge the need for effective therapy that could improve patients' sleep quality.

The purpose of this study was to assess the reported prevalence and severity of sleep disturbance in chronic tinnitus patients and to extract possible tinnitus specific factors that increase the risk of developing sleep disturbances.

Subjects were 165 consecutive patients who came to our clinic from January 2017 to January 2019 for consultations on their tinnitus that persisted for one month or longer. Patients charts, audiogram, and sleep questionnaire were reviewed retrospectively and data from these patients were recorded.

Half of the tinnitus patients experienced a poor sleep quality. Cervical pain, the use of benzodiazepines and antidepressants, a higher maximal and a higher mean intensity of tinnitus were associated with a poor sleep quality. Especially, a higher maximal intensity of tinnitus was associated with a poor sleep quality. With a VAS of the maximal intensity of the tinnitus higher than 85 millimeter, 69% of the patients have a poor sleep quality. If the VAS of the maximal intensity of the tinnitus was less than 60 millimeter, none of the patients had a poor sleep quality.

In a cohort of patients with chronic tinnitus, we found that half of the tinnitus patients experienced poor sleep quality. The level of the maximal intensity of tinnitus was associated with the sleep quality. It seems that reduction of the intensity of the tinnitus is essential for improvement of quality and patients' quality of life in patients with tinnitus.