The test-retest reliability is assessed by the intraclass correlation coefficients, ICC. The internal consistency reliability of this ABQ is confirmed by calculating Cronbach's coefficients α. Factor analysis is applied to arrange these items into 4 subscales. The statistical variables include Age, Average Auditory Threshold (ATT), for assessing HL, Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), for measuring tinnitus, and a new 25-item Auditory Behavior Questionnaire (ABQ), for scoring APD. This group of patients is first categorized in four subgroups, namely, HLTG (with tinnitus and HL), NHLTG (with tinnitus and without HL), HLNTG (with HL but no tinnitus), and NHLNTG (neither tinnitus nor HL). Methods: Statistical analysis is applied to a cohort of 305 patients attending an audiology clinic in Madrid (Spain). Therefore, a combined study of APD, tinnitus and HL on the same cohort of patients can be audiologically relevant and worthy. This peripheral deficit can be accompanied by HL or not, since a type of permanent cochlear damage (thus deafferentation) without an elevation of hearing thresholds might persist. Tinnitus is believed to be triggered by deafferentation of normal peripheral input to the central auditory system. For instance, tinnitus has been reported to degrade the auditory localization capacity. Since HL, tinnitus and APD affects to several parts of the ascending auditory pathway from the periphery to the auditory cortex, there could be some interrelationship between them. APD are not necessarily accompanied by significant HL, whereas many adults exhibit peripheral HL and typical cognitive deficits often associated with APD. These auditory impairments can be concomitant or mutually excluding. Background and Purpose: Auditory processing disorders (APD), tinnitus and hearing loss (HL) are typical issues reported by patients in audiologic clinics.
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