Assessment of auditory conditions in misophonia treatment research: a scoping review.

Objective: To identify treatment research that used a behavioural approach to treat misophonia as the primary focus of treatment, and the audiological testing included in the research.

Design: Scoping literature review completed in February 2023 and updated in March 2024.

Study sample: Included studies that provided a behavioural or audiological intervention for misophonia, were peer-reviewed, and published in English before February 29, 2024. Studies were excluded if a pharmacological treatment was provided, if misophonia was not the primary treatment target, or if the assessment of misophonia severity was not a treatment outcome.

Results: Fifteen articles met the inclusion criteria. Six studies had paediatric participants and nine had adult participants. Three studies included the identification of audiological comorbidities including hearing ability, hyperacusis, and/or tinnitus in their assessment process. Nine of the studies included assessment for psychological comorbidities. For the different psychological treatment approaches, misophonia severity scores decreased from baseline from 19% to 83%.

Conclusions: There is a need for misophonia research to identify audiological comorbidities and to provide evidence-based guidance for addressing them within treatment. Symptoms often appear during childhood and individuals with misophonia would benefit from timely assessment and interdisciplinary coordination to address broader patient impacts in the treatment process.