The incidence of tinnitus in an aleatory sample in Salvador

Purpose:  this study investigated the incidence of tinnitus in an aleatory sample in Salvador city.

Methods:  questionnaire, created by the researchers, was applied to 720 individuals aged between 15 and 90.

Results:  it was found that 25% of the subjects reported tinnitus, although the literature review presents values around 10 to 20%. It was also observed that tinnitus can happen in any age and reach men (28%) and women (22%). Among the group, which refers hearing loss, 62% also refers tinnitus. 78% of the young group reported the presence of sporadic tinnitus and, from the total, 38% refers to noise as the main cause of arising or increasing tinnitus.

Conclusions:  the high level of prevalence of tinnitus in the sample under study can be explained by the fact that this group used to be exposed to loud noise during popular parties.

KEYWORDS:
Tinnitus/epidemiology; Loudness perception; Hyperacusis; Audiology; Hearing; Cochlea; Noise