Korean J Otorhinolaryngol-Head Neck Surg.
2011 Jan;54(1):48-54. 10.3342/kjorl-hns.2011.54.1.48.
Psychoacoustic Characteristics of Prepulse Gap in Tinnitus Patients: A Preliminary Study to Develop an Objective Test Detecting Tinnitus
- Affiliations
-
- 1Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Dankook University Hospital, Cheonan, Korea. drmung@naver.com
- 2Seoul National University College of Medicine, Magnetoencephalography Center, Seoul, Korea.
- 3Department of Medical and Biological Engineering, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
- 4Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
- 5Sensory Organ Research Institute, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Korea.
- KMID: 2277186
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.3342/kjorl-hns.2011.54.1.48
Abstract
- BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
The objective of this study was to observe whether there are differences in detecting ability of pre-pulse gaps between tinnitus patients and normal subjects.
SUBJECTS AND METHOD
Ten tinnitus patients and eight normal subjects were recruited. Fifty stimuli composed of a background noise and a pulse noise were presented to the subjects. For certain stimuli, a short gap preceding the pulse noise was inserted but for others, no gaps were inserted. The two groups were subjected to a gap lasting 300 and 200 msec. The subjects were then asked if they detected the gap during the stimulus and the number of correct answers were counted.
RESULTS
In the tinnitus patient group, the number of correct answers for gap-stimuli detection was significantly smaller when the gap was shortened to 200 msec. In the control group, however, there was only a slight difference in the score. When the length of the gap was shortened to 200 msec, the score significantly decreased in 50% of the tinnitus patients whereas the score increased in only 12% of the control group.
CONCLUSION
The ability to detect pre-pulse gaps is affected by tinnitus in humans just as in the animal models.
