Recent research showed that for 20% of children with hyperacusis even the sound level of a whisper or the background noise in a quiet library is uncomfortable and even painful. This is phenomenon is called “severe hyperacusis” and was first defined by Hashir and colleagues in a research study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Audiology (2018).
About 40% of those with hyperacusis also have misophonia. There is a special pattern of sound sensitivity and intolerance to noise in children with misophonia, they are much more sensitive to high-pitched sounds.
Research published in the International Journal of Audiology (2018) showed that for the great majority (80%) of the young population, tinnitus, hyperacusis and misophonia often occur without any manifestation of hearing problems.
