New onset tinnitus after coronavirus vaccination

In a recent study published in The Laryngoscope researchers assessed the incidence of new-onset tinnitus after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination. The growing prevalence of vaccine hesitancy and anxiety about the messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) COVID-19 vaccine's side effects has become an important global health concern.

In the present study, researchers determined the proportion of patients who experienced new-onset tinnitus within 21 days of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine compared to those who received influenza, polysaccharide pneumococcus, and Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis) vaccines.

The study results showed that within 21 days of receiving their first and second dose of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, 0.038% of the 2,575,235 participants and 0.031% of the 1,477,890 participants were diagnosed with tinnitus. Following the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, there was a decreased likelihood of experiencing tinnitus than following the first dose. Compared to the influenza group, tinnitus was reported by 998,991 influenza vaccine patients and 1,009,935 first-dose COVID-19 vaccine patients. Furthermore, there were 720 cases of a new diagnosis of tinnitus in the influenza group and 374 cases in the first dose COVID-19 group.

Overall, the study findings indicate that patients had a higher chance of experiencing tinnitus after receiving Tdap, influenza, and pneumococcus vaccines than after the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. More research will be required in order to confirm this data set.

Dorney, I., Bobak, L., Otteson, T. and Kaelber, D.C. (2022). Prevalence of New-Onset Tinnitus after COVID-19 Vaccination with Comparison to Other Vaccinations. The Laryngoscope. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/lary.30395 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/lary.30395