Table 1.
Demographic Features, Clinical Characteristics, and Patient-Reported Outcomes of 762 Male Germ Tumor Survivors According to Tinnitus Status
| Characteristic | All Participants (n=762) | Tinnitus Controls (n=608) | Tinnitus Casesa (n=154) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age at diagnosis (years)b | |||
| Median (range) | 31 (15–54) | 30 (15–54) | 35 (16–52) |
| <20 | 43 (5.7%) | 35 (5.8%) | 8 (5.2%) |
| 20–29 | 300 (39.8%) | 249 (41.5%) | 51 (33.1%) |
| 30–39 | 243 (32.2%) | 196 (32.7%) | 47 (30.5%) |
| 40–55 | 168 (22.2%) | 120 (20.0%) | 48 (31.2%) |
| Age at assessment (years) | |||
| Median (range) | 39 (18–75) | 38 (18–71) | 43 (20–75) |
| <20 | 6 (0.8%) | 5 (0.8%) | 1 (0.6%) |
| 20–29 | 134 (17.6%) | 115 (18.9%) | 19 (12.3%) |
| 30 to 49 | 274 (36.0%) | 230 (37.8%) | 44 (28.6%) |
| 40 to 49 | 202 (26.5%) | 150 (24.7%) | 52 (33.8%) |
| 50 to 59 | 123 (16.1%) | 88 (14.5%) | 35 (22.7%) |
| ≥60 | 23 (3.0%) | 20 (3.3%) | 3 (2.0%) |
| Time since therapy completion (years)c | |||
| Median (range) | 5.2 (1–37) | 5.1 (1–37) | 6.2 (1–35) |
| ≤1 | 3 (0.4%) | 1 (0.2%) | 2 (1.3%) |
| >1 and ≤5 | 362 (48.0%) | 293 (48.8%) | 69 (44.8%) |
| >5 and ≤10 | 180 (23.9%) | 145 (24.2%) | 35 (22.7%) |
| >10 and ≤20 | 159 (21.1%) | 127 (21.2%) | 32 (20.8%) |
| >20 | 50 (6.6%) | 34 (5.7%) | 16 (10.4%) |
| Educational level | |||
| Secondary school or less | 95 (12.6%) | 62 (10.3%) | 33 (21.9%) |
| Post-secondary school training | 166 (22.0%) | 129 (21.4%) | 37 (24.5%) |
| College graduate | 334 (44.2%) | 276 (45.7%) | 58 (38.4%) |
| Post graduate training/degree | 160 (21.2%) | 137 (22.7%) | 23 (15.2%) |
| Chemotherapy regimend | |||
| BEP | 444 (58.3%) | 355 (58.4%) | 89 (57.8%) |
| EP | 254 (33.3%) | 205 (33.7) | 49 (31.8%) |
| Other | 64 (8.4%) | 48 (7.9%) | 16 (10.4%) |
| Number of cycles, platinum-based chemotherapye | |||
| ≤2 | 15 (2.0%) | 13 (2.2%) | 2 (1.3%) |
| 3 | 333 (44.0%) | 272 (45.1%) | 61 (39.6%) |
| 4 | 389 (51.4%) | 307 (50.9%) | 82 (53.2%) |
| >4 | 20 (2.6%) | 11 (1.8%) | 9 (5.8%) |
| Cumulative cisplatin dose (mg/m2)f | |||
| Median | 400 (100–828) | 400 (200–800) | 400 (100–827.6) |
| < 300 | 41 (5.5%) | 32 (5.4%) | 9 (5.9%) |
| 300 | 300 (40.0%) | 248 (41.5%) | 52 (34.0%) |
| >300 and <400 | 21 (2.8%) | 15 (2.5%) | 6 (3.9%) |
| 400 | 358 (47.7%) | 287 (48.1%) | 71 (46.4%) |
| > 400 | 30 (4.0%) | 15 (2.5%) | 15 (9.8%) |
| Reduced hearing in past four weeksg | |||
| Not at all | 555 (73.1%) | 521 (85.7%) | 34 (22.5%) |
| A little | 127 (16.7%) | 71 (11.7%) | 56 (37.1%) |
| Quite a bit/very much | 77 (10.1%) | 16 (2.6%) | 61 (40.4%) |
| Problems hearing in crowdsh | |||
| Yes | 222 (30.6%) | 124 (21.2%) | 98 (69.0%) |
| No | 505 (69.4%) | 461 (78.8%) | 44 (31.0%) |
| Requires hearing aidi | |||
| Yes | 2 (0.3%) | 2 (0.3%) | 0 (0%) |
| No | 741 (99.7%) | 602 (99.7%) | 139 (100%) |
| Noise exposure | |||
| None | 430 (56.4%) | 365 (60.0%) | 65 (42.2%) |
| Work related OR other exposure | 213 (28.0%) | 163 (26.8%) | 50 (32.5%) |
| Work related AND other exposure | 119 (15.6%) | 80 (13.2%) | 39 (25.3%) |
| Audiometrically assessed hearing lossj,k | |||
| None/mild | 238 (39.4%) | 220 (45.4%) | 18 (15.0%) |
| Moderate | 93 (15.4%) | 75 (15.5%) | 18 (15.0%) |
| Moderately severe | 129 (21.4%) | 103 (21.3%) | 26 (21.7%) |
| Severe/profound | 144 (23.8%) | 86 (17.8%) | 58 (48.3%) |
| Peripheral neuropathyl | |||
| None | 373 (49.0%) | 329 (54.1%) | 44 (28.6%) |
| Mild | 281 (36.9%) | 215 (35.4%) | 66 (42.9%) |
| Severe | 108 (14.1%) | 64 (10.5%) | 34 (28.6%) |
| Persistent vertigo or dizzinessm | |||
| Yes | 36 (4.9%) | 15 (2.5%) | 21 (14.3%) |
| No | 702 (95.1%) | 576 (97.5%) | 126 (85.7%) |
| Self-reported healthn | |||
| Excellent | 134 (17.6%) | 121 (20.0%) | 13 (11.7%) |
| Very good | 317 (41.7%) | 264 (43.6%) | 53 (45.5%) |
| Good | 266 (35.0%) | 196 (32.3%) | 70 (34.4%) |
| Poor/fair | 43 (5.7%) | 25 (4.1%) | 18 (8.4%) |
| Medication for anxiety, psychosis, and/or depressiono | |||
| Yes | 57 (10.1%) | 38 (8.3%) | 19 (17.75%) |
| No | 510 (89.9%) | 422 (91.7%) | 88 (82.2%) |
| Hypertension and on medication | |||
| Yes | 106 (14.0%) | 69 (11.6%) | 37 (24.2%) |
| No | 651 (86.0%) | 535 (89.9%) | 116 (75.8%) |
| Smoking statusp | |||
| Ever smoker | 303 (39.9%) | 235 (38.8%) | 68 (44.2%) |
| Never smoker | 457 (60.1%) | 371 (61.2%) | 86 (55.8%) |
| Alcohol consumptionq | |||
| ≤4 drinks per week | 487 (64.2%) | 384 (63.4%) | 103 (66.9%) |
| 5–7 drinks per week | 172 (22.7%) | 140 (24.3%) | 32 (20.8%) |
| ≥2 drinks per day | 100 (13.2%) | 81 (12.3%) | 19 (12.3%) |
Abbreviations: BEP, bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin, EP, etoposide, and cisplatin, NA not applicable
NOTE: Data presented as number (%) unless otherwise noted
Restricted to patients who reported “quite a bit’ or ‘very much” tinnitus. Patients who reported “a little” tinnitus (n=265) are excluded from the table and all analyses.
Category excludes 8 participants for whom age at diagnosis was not recorded.
Category excludes 8 participants for whom this variable was not stated.
BEP category includes patients who received only bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin; EP includes patients who received only etoposide and cisplatin. The other category includes patients who received other antineoplastic agents, including ifosfamide (n=45), vinblastine (n=6), and carboplatin (n=5), or who were missing dose data (n=12).
Category excludes 5 participants for whom number of cycles was not stated.
Category excludes 12 participants for whom complete dose data were not available.
Category excludes 3 participants who did not answer this question.
Category excludes 35 participants who did not answer this question.
Category excludes 19 participants who did not answer this question.
Category excludes 158 participants who did not complete audiometric testing.
ASHA criteria defined hearing loss severity as the following: mild: 21 to 40 dB; moderate: 41 to 55 dB; moderately severe: 56 to 70 dB; severe: 71 to 90 dB; and profound: > 90 dB; for at least one tested frequency for either ear (https://www.asha.org/public/hearing/Degree-of-Hearing-Loss)
Following conversion of the Likert scale: “none, a little, quite a bit, very much” to a 0–3 numeric scale, each individual was assigned a summary statistic for the sensory subscale (Cronbach (α = 0.88) and the motor subscale (α = 0.78) by taking the mean of the response in the subscale: none (mean = 0), mild (0 < mean ≤ 1), severe (mean > 1) (16, 17).
Category excludes 24 participants who did not answer this question.
Category excludes 2 participants who did not answer this question.
Category excludes 195 who did not answer this question. Participants could report more than one psychotropic medication including anxiolytics, antipsychotics, and antidepressants. Psychotropic medications investigated include: alprazolam (n=8), aripiprazole (n=2), amphetamine + dextroamphetamine (n = 14), amantadine (n = 1), buproprion (n = 9), carbidopa/levodopa (n = 1), citalopram (n = 8), clonazepam (n = 13), desvenlafaxine (n = 1), diazepam (n = 1), duloxetine (n = 8), escitalopram (n = 19), fluoxetine (n = 5), fluvoxamine (n = 1), hydroxazine (n = 1), lisdexamfetamine (n = 4), lorazepam (n = 1), methylphenidate (n = 13), nortriptyline (n = 2), olanzapine (n = 2), paroxetine (n = 5), pramipexole (n = 1), sertraline (n = 7), trazodone (n = 8), valproate (n = 1), venlafaxine (n = 10).
Category excludes 2 participants for whom this outcome was not stated.
Category excludes 3 participants for whom this outcome was not stated.