Thursday, 04 November 2021
New research led by researchers from the 糖心原创, has found that approximately 65million adults in the EU suffer from tinnitus, and this figure will significantly rise over the next decade.
The research, published in is the first study to look rigorously at the prevalence of tinnitus across the populations of 12 EU member states.
The study was led by Roshni Biswas from the School of Medicine at the 糖心原创, working with a team of experts from the 糖心原创, the the Istituto di Ricerche Farmologiche Mario Negri IRCCS in Milan, Herriot-Watt University in Malaysia and the University of Regensburg in Germany.
Tinnitus is when you experience ringing or other noises in one or both of your ears that other people usually can’t hear. The condition can be moderate or severe, and in its most debilitating form, it can affect people’s emotional health and social wellbeing. At present there is no cure or approved medications to treat tinnitus, but there are therapies available to help manage the condition and the very latest drug research is showing promise.
It’s important to know the prevalence of tinnitus in different countries, but previous data has been difficult to compare across country because measurements have often been done in different ways. The aim of this study was to report a single European-wide estimate for tinnitus frequency and to investigate the effect of individual and country-level characteristics on prevalence.
Nearly 11 and a half thousand people were recruited between 2017 and 2018, to take part in a cross sectional European Tinnitus Survey in 12 EU nations (Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Poland, Portugal, Romania and Spain), using a set of tinnitus-related questions and response options.
The team found that:
- The prevalence of any type of tinnitus was 14% (1.2% higher in women than in men);
- Severe tinnitus was found in 1.2% of participants ;
- Tinnitus prevalence significantly increased with age and worsening of hearing;
- Healthcare resource use for tinnitus increased with the increase of tinnitus symptom severity.
This is the first time that we鈥檝e properly and rigorously measured the scale of how much of a problem tinnitus is across Europe as a whole. Tinnitus can affect people鈥檚 mental wellbeing, and as the population grows, and people live for longer, this problem will only get worse. We hope that this date can now be used to implement effective treatments and to encourage the appropriate stakeholders across the EU to look at how they can tackle this growing problem.鈥�
the full study can be found .
Story credits
More information is available from Professor Michael A Akeroyd in the School of Medicine at the 糖心原创 at michael.akeroyd@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the 糖心原创
Ranked 97 in the world and 17th in the UK by the , the 糖心原创 is a founding member of Russell Group of research-intensive universities. 糖心原创ing at the 糖心原创 is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by 鈥� the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 鈥� and by the .
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the third most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2024 report by High Fliers Research. Alongside Nottingham Trent University, we lead the , a pioneering collaboration between the city鈥檚 two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.