Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29757798›Full record

ArticleEar and hearing

Tinnitus Severity Is Related to the Sound Exposure of Symphony Orchestra Musicians Independently of Hearing Impairment.

Jesper Hvass Schmidt, Helene M Paarup, Jesper Bælum

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Ear and hearing. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 22% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 22 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Auditory Symptoms Among Musicians: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Surrounded by Sound: The Impact of Tinnitus on Musicians.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021
    Article
  6. Loud Music and Leisure Noise Is a Common Cause of Chronic Hearing Loss, Tinnitus and Hyperacusis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021
    Review
  7. Article
  8. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Jesper Hvass SchmidtDepartment of ORL Head and Neck Surgery and Audiology, Odense University Hospital, Odense C, Denmark.
Helene M PaarupDepartment of Clinical Immunology, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark.
Jesper BælumInstitute of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense M, Denmark.
University of Southern Denmark · DKOdense University Hospital · DK

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTinnitus can be debilitating and with great impact of musicians professional and private life. The objectives of the study were therefore to: (1) describe the epidemiology of tinnitus including its severity in classical orchestra musicians, (2) investigate the association between tinnitus severity in classical musicians and their cumulative lifetime sound exposure, and (3) the association between tinnitus and hearing thresholds.

designThe study population included all musicians from five Danish symphony orchestras. Answers regarding their perception of tinnitus were received from 325 musicians, and 212 musicians were also tested with audiometry. Any tinnitus and severe tinnitus were two definitions of tinnitus used as outcomes and analyzed in relation to an estimation of the cumulative lifetime sound exposure from sound measurements and previously validated questionnaires and the average hearing threshold of 3, 4, and 6 kHz.

resultsThirty-five percentage of all musicians (31% female and 38% of male musicians) reported having experienced at least one episode of tinnitus lasting for more than 5 minutes during their life. Severe tinnitus with a severe impact on daily life was reported by 19% of the musicians (18% of female and 21% of male musicians). The severity of tinnitus was associated with increased lifetime sound exposure but not to poorer high frequency hearing thresholds when the lifetime sound exposure was considered. The odds ratio for an increase in one unit of tinnitus severity was 1.25 (95% CI, 1.12-1.40) for every 1 dB increase in lifetime sound exposure.

conclusionMusicians frequently report tinnitus. Any tinnitus and severe tinnitus are significantly associated with the cumulative lifetime sound exposure, which was shown to be the most important factor not only for the prevalence but also for the severity of tinnitus-even in musicians without hearing loss. High-frequency hearing thresholds and tinnitus severity were correlated only if the cumulative lifetime sound exposure was excluded from the analyses.

Indexed as

MusicNoise, OccupationalAdultDenmarkFemaleHearing LossHumansMaleMiddle AgedOccupational DiseasesOccupational ExposureOdds RatioPrevalenceSeverity of Illness IndexSoundTinnitus

Identifiers

PMID29757798
PMCPMC6319581
OpenAlexW2802917047

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.