Selective attentional impairment in chronic tinnitus: evidence from an event-related potentials study

OBJECTIVE: Tinnitus is an auditory phantom sensation experienced in the absence of a sound source. Cognitive dysfunctions, especially in working memory and attention, are frequently reported to be associated with tinnitus. The aim of this study was to investigate attentional functioning in a group of subjects with chronic tinnitus using ERPs, and in particular the P300 components. METHODS: We studied 20 patients with chronic tinnitus and 20 healthy subjects that performed a P300 Novelty task. RESULTS: P3a amplitude was significantly lower in tinnitus subjects than in controls. P3a latency was comparable in patients and controls. The P3b parameters were similar in the two groups. N1 latency for all the stimuli was significantly longer in tinnitus subjects than in controls. CONCLUSION: These results point to a general slowing in early stimulus perception in tinnitus subjects. Moreover, a specific difficulty emerged in attentional switching to unexpected events during an orienting response, probably owing to a dysfunction in the ventral attention network. SIGNIFICANCE: Psychophysiological approach reveals selective attentional impairment and could provide useful data for rehabilitative strategies in chronic tinnitus.