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Personality and Sleep Evaluation of Patients with Tinnitus in Japan

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Abstract

In Japan, there have been no examinations of tinnitus with respect to personality traits, and only a few studies have investigated sleep disorders in tinnitus. Understanding the association between these can aid in selecting and developing effective treatment options for patients with tinnitus. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between tinnitus severity, personality, and sleep disorders, in patients with chronic tinnitus in Japan. We retrospectively evaluated the personality factors of 56 patients presenting with tinnitus using the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI), which examines five personality characteristics, including Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. We evaluated tinnitus severity, sleep disorders, depression, and anxiety using the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Self-Rating Depression Scale, and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, respectively. Neuroticism and tinnitus severity were positively correlated (r = 0.548, p < 0.001). Sleep disorders were observed in 73.2% of patients; however, there was no correlation between the PSQI score and tinnitus severity or between PSQI score and scores of the five NEO-FFI items. Sleep disorders are frequently experienced by patients with chronic tinnitus, regardless of tinnitus severity or personality. Understanding the relationship between personality and tinnitus severity could lead to better management of tinnitus.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Editage (www.editage.jp) for English language editing.

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Author notes

  1. Yozo Inagaki and Noriomi Suzuki contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 160-8582, Japan

    Yozo Inagaki, Noriomi Suzuki, Naoki Oishi, Seiichi Shinden & Kaoru Ogawa

  2. Department of Otolaryngology, National Hospital Organization Tochigi Medical Center, Tochigi, Japan

    Noriomi Suzuki

  3. Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Tokai University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan

    Fumiyuki Goto

  4. Department of Otolaryngology, Saiseikai Utsunomiya Hospital, Tochigi, Japan

    Seiichi Shinden

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  1. Yozo Inagaki
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  2. Noriomi Suzuki
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  3. Naoki Oishi
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  4. Fumiyuki Goto
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  6. Kaoru Ogawa
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Correspondence to Naoki Oishi.

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Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate

This retrospective study was approved by the ethics committee at the Keio University School of Medicine (JPRN-UMIN000008901). Procedures that involved collecting information from patient medical records were carried out in accordance with the Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association (Declaration of Helsinki) for experiments involving humans. Informed oral support was obtained from all participants.

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Inagaki, Y., Suzuki, N., Oishi, N. et al. Personality and Sleep Evaluation of Patients with Tinnitus in Japan. Psychiatr Q 92, 249–257 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-020-09794-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-020-09794-7

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