TINNITUS AND AUDITORY PROCESSING: STUDY OF THE ABILITY OF AUDITORY INTEGRATION IN INDIVIDUALS WITH TINNITUS COMPLAINT

Abstract

Tinnitus is characterized by the presence of one or more sounds in the ears or head in the absence of a corresponding external sound stimulus. Among the most common symptoms that are associated with tinnitus, difficulty in discriminating speech is one of them. It is believed that tinnitus can present itself as a competitive sound that interferes with the binaural integration of sounds. The objective of this study was to investigate the performance of the auditory ability of binaural integration in individuals with and without complaints of tinnitus. This was a cross-sectional cohort study. 60 volunteers participated: 30 without tinnitus (control group) and 30 with tinnitus symptom (study group). Individuals with hearing loss were excluded. Both groups were submitted to central auditory processing assessment through two behavioral tests: alternating syllable dichotics and the digit dichotic test. The group without tinnitus showed a better significant performance when compared to the group with complaints of tinnitus in all tests and in both ears. Asymmetries were not observed between the ears, considering each group separately. In addition, the two dichotic tests used showed compatible results. When qualitatively analyzing the SSW test, it was observed that the type of inversion error was the one that most occurred. It was found that tinnitus can impair auditory perception, making binaural integration and selective attention more difficult. Therefore, it is extremely important to carry out such tests, since they can also assist in therapy, in the strategies of an effective intervention and, consequently, in the communication skills.