Table 2.

Ten-Item Rating Scale for Quality Assessment of Included Studies.

1.	Clear description of study design
2.	Clear description of subject/control inclusion and exclusion criteria
3.	Inclusion of appropriate control group
4.	Clear description of study population demographics
5.	Clear description of hearing loss type, degree, and laterality
6.	Clear description of MRI acquisition parameters and DTI/tractography workflow
7.	Description of regions of interest included with well-formulated reasoning
8.	Scalar diffusion metrics reported
9.	Diffusion tractography performed
10.	Correlation of scalar diffusion metrics with audiometric tools (CAP, audiometric thresholds etc)

Abbreviations: CAP, categories of auditory performance; DTI, diffusion tensor imaging; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging.