Neurology
Tinnitus Burden among Young to Middle-Aged Adults in the United States: the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) Chuan-Ming Li* Chuan-Ming Li Li Li Li Li Epidemiology and Statistics Program, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Objective: To estimate tinnitus incidence, prevalence, and risk factors among adults aged 24–51 years.
Methods: The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) is a nationally representative cohort of students recruited in grades 7–12 during 1994–1995. Participants in Wave 4 (2008; ages 24–32; n=15,701), Wave 5 (2016–2018; ages 33–43; n=12,300), and Wave 6 (2022–2025; ages 39–51; n=11,979) were asked whether they experienced bothersome tinnitus lasting ≥5 minutes in the past 12 months. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate ORs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) while simultaneously adjusting for potential risk factors.
Results: Overall, 22.0% of participants reported tinnitus at least once across the three waves. Among 8,846 participants completing all three waves, tinnitus prevalence increased from 6.3% in Wave 4 (6.7% males; 5.8% females) to 10.7% in Wave 5 (12.7% males; 9.2% females) and 15.4% in Wave 6 (17.4% males; 13.4% females). Tinnitus prevalence in Wave 5 increased from 27.3% to 64.4% for individuals in Wave 4 who reported their onset of tinnitus from <3 months to ≥15 years. Tinnitus prevalence in Wave 5 also increased from 28.7% to 73.8% as the frequency of occurrence in Wave 4 increased from “less than once a month” to “almost always”. In Wave 5, significant risk factors included male sex (OR=1.9; CI: 1.5, 2.7), head trauma (OR=1.5; CI: 1.2, 1.9), headaches (OR=1.8; CI: 1.5, 2.2), anxiety (OR=1.3; CI: 1.0, 1.6), balance/dizziness problems (OR=2.7; CI: 2.2, 3.3), and report of moderate or worse hearing trouble (OR=16.2; CI: 10.9, 24.1). In Wave 6, tinnitus prevalence increased from 47.1% to 85.7% as tinnitus severity in Wave 5 increased from “no problem” to “a very big problem”.
Conclusions: Tinnitus is common in young adults and increases steadily with age. The Add Health longitudinal study provides insight into how risk factors contribute to the increasing prevalence of tinnitus with age.