Call for an Evidence-Based Consensus on Outcome Reporting in Tinnitus Intervention Studies

摘要

Tinnitus is a very common symptom affecting 5.1–42.7% of the population (1) and is frequently seen in family medicine and primary care settings. Despite its considerable socioeconomic relevance (2), real progress in developing an effective cure for tinnitus has been fruitless (3). In most of the cases, the proposed therapies remain palliative; aiming at alleviating the negative consequences of tinnitus. Although the need for effective management options for tinnitus is clear, methodological and reporting quality of clinical trials have been low (4, 5) making useful recommendations and practical guidelines for family medicine and primary health-care practitioners almost impossible to draw. Indeed, Baguley and colleagues (6) concluded that, with the exception of cognitive behavior therapy for tinnitus, evidence for the effectiveness of different treatment strategies is insufficient (pp. 1605).