Telehealth in treating tinnitus: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Objective: Treatment for tinnitus focuses on supportive therapies. Long waiting times in the National Health Service encourage telemedicine options as an alternative. This study aimed to review the literature on telemedicine in the management of tinnitus and analyse its impact on the burden of tinnitus, long-term, anxiety, depression, insomnia and quality of life.

Method: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Scopus and Web of Science were searched. English randomised, controlled trials with adult participants suffering from tinnitus were included. A random effects model looking at standardised mean differences between intervention and control groups was utilised.

Results: Eleven randomised, controlled trials were included. Nine studies looked at internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy. A z-value of 9.87 (p < 0.00001; I² = 21 per cent) showed telemedicine approaches may be better at reducing tinnitus burden compared with passive controls.

Conclusion: Telemedicine options have multiple benefits, but more research will be needed to conclusively say they are better than alternatives.

Keywords: Tinnitus; cognitive behavioural therapy; meta-analysis; otolaryngology; smartphone; systematic review; telemedicine; therapeutics.