COVID-19 and tinnitus—a tertiary care Centre experience

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 outbreak was declared a global pandemic in March 2020 by WHO. Due to person-to-person transmission of this infection, majority of countries of world introduced lockdown to ensure people stay at home. A complex bidirectional interaction exists between tinnitus and emotional distress, as they can exacerbate one another. Also, COVID-19 infection can cause damage to outer hair cells. The aim of this study is to find out relationship between COVID-19 and initiation or exacerbation of tinnitus. METHODS: The present retrospective study, after approval by Institutional Ethics Committee, was conducted in Department of ENT, GMC Jammu, from June 2020 to March 2021 on 90 patients with primary complaint of tinnitus. All 90 patients were asked to complete the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory. Also, all patients were asked COVID-19-related questions (history of contracting virus/history of grief/anxiety/depression/stress/nervousness/financial status/ physical exercise/sleep routine/ social interactions). RESULTS: Out of 90 patients, 72 patients (80%) had chronic longstanding tinnitus and 18 patients (20%) experienced tinnitus during pandemic. Out of 72 patients who gave history of longstanding tinnitus, 41 patients (56.9%) reported tinnitus to be stable during COVID-19 pandemic, 26 patients (36.1%) reported it to become more bothersome and 5 patients (6.9%) reported that tinnitus was improved. Out of 90 patients, 21 patients (23.3%) were diagnosed as COVID-19 positive. Of these 21 patients experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, 16 patients (76.2%) gave history of exacerbation of tinnitus, 4 patients (19%) gave history of tinnitus remaining stable and 1 patient (4.7%) said that tinnitus was improved. Out of 90 patients, history of negative psychological impact due to COVID-19 restrictions was seen in 65 patients (72.2%). CONCLUSION: With our study, we concluded that ENT specialists should be fully aware that not only pre-existing tinnitus may be exaggerated due to COVID-19 infection, but also, there can be development of new-onset tinnitus due to COVID-19 infection and the negative psychological impact due to COVID-19 pandemic.