Table 1A.

Characteristics of tinnitus questionnaires (TQ).

Instrument	Developed to measure	Items	Scoring per item	Interpretation of score/grading system	Cronbach's α	Subscales
THI (20)	Level of perceived tinnitus severity	25	0 never 2 sometimes 4 yes	0-16 light 18-36 mild 58-76 severe 78-100 catastrophic	0.93 (20)	Functional Emotional Catastrophic
TQ (21)	Psychological aspects of tinnitus complaints and distress	52*	0 not true 1 Partly true 2 true	0-30 light 31-46 mild 47-59 severe 60-84 very severe <46 = compensated >46 = decompensated	0.95 (22)	Emotional distress Cognitive distress Intrusiveness Auditory perceptual difficulties Sleep disturbance Somatic complaints
mTQ (23)	Abbreviated version of TQ	10	0 not true 1 Partly true 2 true	Grading system not provided. A higher total score indicates a higher level of tinnitus handicap	0.87 (22)	none
TRQ (24)	Psychological distress due to tinnitus	26	0 not at all 4 almost all the time	Grading system not provided. A higher total score indicates a higher level of tinnitus handicap	0.96 (24)	General distress interference Severity Avoidance
THQ (25)	The perceived degree of handicap due to tinnitus	27	0 strongly disagree 100 strongly agree	Grading system not provided. A higher total score indicates a higher level of tinnitus handicap	0.93 (25)	Physical health Emotional status Social consequences Hearing and communication Personal viewpoint
TFI (26)	Tinnitus severity and treatment related change	25	0 not affected 10 always affected	Grading system not provided. A higher total score indicates a higher level of tinnitus handicap	>0.7 (27)	Intrusiveness Sense of control Concentration Sleep Hearing Relaxation Quality of life emotion
TPFQ (28)	The primary way tinnitus impacts a person's life	20	0 completely disagree 100 completely agree	Grading system not provided. A higher total score indicates a higher level of tinnitus handicap	0.92 (28)	Concentration Emotion Hearing Sleep

^*The 40 out of 52 items are used for TQ total score, and the items 5 and 20 are counted double.