This study explores the extent to which commonly used tinnitus questionnaires align with relevant International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) domains. The aim is not to establish the superiority of any tool, but rather to identify potential gaps in domain coverage and to support more intentional questionnaire selection....
No actionable change — this is a conceptual/mapping analysis; however, audiologists selecting tinnitus outcome measures should be aware that no single existing questionnaire comprehensively covers all ICF domains, and using multiple tools may be warranted.
Highlighting gaps in ICF coverage across tinnitus questionnaires can guide researchers and clinicians toward more holistic outcome measurement, potentially improving tinnitus care and research quality.
- 01Commonly used tinnitus questionnaires were mapped to ICF domains to assess comprehensiveness.
- 02No single questionnaire fully covers all relevant ICF domains for tinnitus-related functioning.
- 03Gaps identified include participation restrictions and environmental factors.
- 04Findings suggest a multi-questionnaire or tailored approach for comprehensive tinnitus assessment.
- 05Results have implications for standardising outcome measures in tinnitus research and clinical trials.
Commonly used tinnitus questionnaires do not comprehensively cover all ICF domains relevant to tinnitus.
studysupportedICF-linked analysis can identify gaps in tinnitus outcome measurement tools.
studysupported- PMID
- 42338275
- DOI
- 10.7874/jao.2025.00346.
- Journal
- Journal of Audiology and Otology
- Publication type
- review
- Evidence level
- 5
- Population
- Conceptual analysis of tinnitus questionnaires; no patient cohort
- Intervention
- ICF-domain mapping of international tinnitus questionnaires
Primary outcomes
Degree of alignment between tinnitus questionnaire items and ICF domains; Identification of ICF domain gaps in existing tinnitus assessment tools