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- Assessment of auditory conditions in misophonia treatment research
- (Muñoz et al., 2025)
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Assessment of auditory conditions in misophonia treatment research: a scoping review
Status::
Metadata
- Item Type: #journalArticle
- Authors:: Karen Muñoz, Doris Velasquez, Makara Humes, Diana Ortiz, Michael P. Twohig,
- Date:
- Date Added: 1745366849000
- URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14992027.2025.2467768
- DOI: 10.1080/14992027.2025.2467768
- Cite Key: munozAssessmentAuditoryConditions2025
- Topics: [object Object]
- Tags:: #Bare-bones-review-🦴 #Misophonia, #literature-review,
- PDF Attachments
Abstract
| Background/Purpose | Background- • Misophonia involves disproportionate emotional responses to everyday sounds, often beginning in childhood and persisting into adulthood. • Although auditory thresholds in misophonia are usually normal, it may co-occur with conditions such as tinnitus or hyperacusis, though prevalence estimates vary. • No universally accepted diagnostic criteria exist, and prevalence estimates range from 20–34% in non-clinical populations. • Prior research lacks clarity on the role of auditory comorbidities in treatment outcomes. • Previous systematic reviews have identified promising but limited behavioral treatments with poor methodological rigor (e.g., Mattson et al., 2023). Purpose- • To identify and describe behavioral treatment studies focused on misophonia and assess the extent to which auditory conditions were evaluated in these studies. • To explore how audiological assessments were integrated into misophonia treatment and identify gaps in interdisciplinary assessment protocols. |
| Participants/samples | • 15 peer-reviewed articles included. • 6 studies with pediatric participants (ages 10–17); 9 studies with adult participants. • All studies used behavioral (non-pharmacological) interventions and measured misophonia outcomes. Inclusion Criteria: • Behavioral/audiological interventions targeting misophonia as the primary concern. • Published in English before February 29, 2024. • Excluded: pharmacological interventions, studies lacking post-treatment misophonia outcome data. |
| Measures | • Psychological Measures: AMISO-S, MQ, AMISO-R, MAQ, SFive, CGI-I. • Audiological Measures: Hearing thresholds, self-reported tinnitus/hyperacusis, LDLs. • Only 3 studies formally assessed auditory comorbidities. • 9 studies assessed for psychological comorbidities (e.g., anxiety, ADHD, depression). |
| Procedures | N/A |
| Results | • Misophonia severity decreased post-treatment in all studies (range: 19–93% improvement). • CBT was the most frequently used intervention. • Only three studies evaluated auditory comorbidities: • One adult case report (Vanaja & Abigail, 2020): no hyperacusis, normal hearing. • One pediatric case (Cecilione et al., 2022): negative for hyperacusis. • One RCT (Jager et al., 2020b): auditory status assessed but not integrated into treatment planning. • Two-thirds of included studies were case reports, limiting generalizability. • RCT and open trial showed promising but limited evidence of efficacy (e.g., 37–48% clinical response). |
| Discussion/Limits | Conclusion- • Behavioral treatments, especially CBT-based, show potential to reduce misophonia severity. • There is insufficient integration of audiological assessment into misophonia treatment research. • Timely assessment and interdisciplinary treatment (audiology + psychology) is essential, particularly due to early onset in childhood. |
| Limitations:: | • Heavy reliance on case reports with small samples and potential bias. • Studies only in English. • Excluded research addressing misophonia as a secondary issue. |
| Future Directions:: | • Standardize audiological evaluation in misophonia treatment research. • Expand RCTs and controlled studies with active comparison groups. • Investigate the impact of auditory comorbidities (e.g., tinnitus, hyperacusis) on treatment outcomes. • Develop validated tools for pediatric misophonia assessment. • Emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration in treatment planning. |
| Relevance:: | • a lit review of 15 studies looking at studies of behavioral and audiological interventions for Misophonia. • highlights the need for research into audiological comorbidities with Misophonia • a decent spin up for onboarding new audio people to Misophonia , but most if not all of the sources had been reviewed by me by the time i saw this paper, and those that I haven’t have been added to the que. |
Notes
key terms
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Misophonia – A sound tolerance disorder characterized by intense emotional reactions (e.g., anger, irritation, disgust) to specific trigger sounds (e.g., chewing, tapping), not attributable to auditory thresholds or damage.
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Hyperacusis – An auditory condition involving increased sensitivity to normal environmental sounds, often assessed via self-report or loudness discomfort levels (LDLs).
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CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) – A psychological intervention that addresses dysfunctional emotions and behaviors through goal-oriented procedures.
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ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) – A behavioral therapy focusing on psychological flexibility through acceptance and mindfulness strategies.
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DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) – A therapy combining cognitive-behavioral techniques with concepts of mindfulness, often used for emotion regulation.
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AMISO-S – Amsterdam Misophonia Scale, a tool for measuring severity of misophonia symptoms.
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MQ – Misophonia Questionnaire, a self-report measure of misophonia-related symptoms.
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CGI-I – Clinical Global Impressions - Improvement, a clinician-rated scale assessing treatment response.
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Scoping Review – A type of research synthesis that maps existing literature on a topic, identifying gaps and trends.
my engagement notes
my questions
my comments
Bookmarks
reading notes
Pediatric treatment trends
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All pediatric studies were case reports with psychological treatments.
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Typical onset of misophonia was around ages 5–11.
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Family involvement (e.g., session participation, support strategies) was a beneficial component in some cases.
Audiological research gaps
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Despite frequent co-occurrence of auditory symptoms (e.g., tinnitus, hyperacusis), objective audiological testing is rare in treatment research.
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Researchers advocate including audiological professionals in misophonia assessment teams.
Treatment evolution and maintenance
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Some studies demonstrated maintained treatment effects at 6–12 months post-treatment.
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Symptoms often increased in number and severity over time if untreated.