Tinnitus Prevalence Among the Primary Care Patients in Kayseri, Turkiye

Aim: This investigation was carried out in order to determine the prevalence of tinnitus amongthe adults in the provincial centre of Kayseri and the effects of some medical, social anddemographic factors on the prevalence of tinnitus. Material and Methods: Eleven of 40 primary health centers in the provincial center of Kayseri were selected randomly. A total of 900 individuals were chosen from the patients who referred to these health centers. A questionnaire was applied by face to face interviewing method. Twenty-one people were excluded for incomplete answers. Totally 879 questionnaires (97.7%) were evaluated. Binary logistic regression analysis were performed for statistical analysis. Results: Total prevalence rate of tinnitus was found as 32.9%. Prevalence rate of tinnitus among the females was found higher than the males (37.5% and 27.4% respectively). Prevalence rates of tinnitus among the people who have hypertension, anaemia, hearing loss and who are working or worked at the noisy places were higher than the others. The effects of age, diabetes mellitus and hearth diseases were not found significant. Conclusion: Approximately one third of the study group has tinnitus. Tinnitus prevalence among the females is higher than the males. Hypertension, anaemia, hearing loss and working at noisy places increase tinnitus prevalence.