Abstract
Objective
This study aimed to investigate the connection between psychological factors and postoperative tinnitus in vestibular schwannoma (VS) patients following retrosigmoid microsurgery.
Design
Cross-sectional study.
Study sample
Ninety-three VS patients participated, completing questionnaires on demographics, tinnitus severity (THI-12), personality traits (TIPI-G), dizziness impact (DHI), perceived health benefits (GBI), somatisation tendencies (SOMS-2), and psychological distress (HADS-D). Our analysis involved Mann-Whitney U-tests, Spearman’s rank-order correlations, and false discovery rate correction.
Results
Most participants reported postoperative tinnitus (77/93), with 41 experiencing it preoperatively. Emotional stability correlated negatively with tinnitus presence, while tinnitus severity was associated with emotional distress. Preoperative somatisation tendencies were also positively linked to tinnitus severity. Postoperative Tinnitus was further linked to reduced perceived health benefits and increased anxiety and depression levels. Notably, age and gender showed no significant associations.
Conclusion
This study uncovers the interplay between postoperative tinnitus and psychological factors in VS patients, highlighting emotional and cognitive dimensions. Tailored psychological interventions addressing tinnitus‘s psychosomatic impact may enhance patients quality of life.
Acknowledgments
We gratefully acknowledge the support provided by Vereinigung Akustikusneurinom e.V.
Ethical approval
All subjects gave their informed consent for inclusion before they participated in the study. The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and the protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of University Hospital Halle (No. 2020-008).
Informed consent statement
Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Data availability statement
The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to privacy reasons.