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Australas Psychiatry 2021 Jan 12:1039856220986719. Epub 2021 Jan 12.

Perinatal Psychiatry Service, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, NSW.

Cortex 2020 Nov 26;135:92-107. Epub 2020 Nov 26.

Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, UCL, London, UK; Biosciences Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

We investigated auditory processing in a young patient who experienced a single embolus causing an infarct in the right middle cerebral artery territory. This led to damage to auditory cortex including planum temporale that spared medial Heschl's gyrus, and included damage to the posterior insula and inferior parietal lobule. She reported chronic difficulties with segregating speech from noise and segregating elements of music. Read More

Depress Anxiety 2020 Dec 18. Epub 2020 Dec 18.

Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam Neuroscience, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Background: Patients with misophonia suffer from anger or disgust confronted with specific sounds such as smacking or breathing. Avoidance of cue-related situations results in social isolation and significant functional impairment. This is the first randomized, controlled cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) trial for misophonia, evaluating the short- and long-term efficacy. Read More

Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020 Dec 4;121:1-17. Epub 2020 Dec 4.

Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1215 21st Avenue South, Medical Center East, Room 8310, Nashville, TN, 37232, United States; Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, 7203 Medical Research Building III, 465 21st Avenue South, Nashville, TN, 37232, United States; Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, Vanderbilt University, 2414 Highland Avenue, Suite 115, Nashville, TN, 37212, United States; Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 110 Magnolia Cir, Nashville, TN, 37203, United States. Electronic address:

Atypical behavioral responses to environmental sounds are common in autistic children and adults, with 50-70 % of this population exhibiting decreased sound tolerance (DST) at some point in their lives. This symptom is a source of significant distress and impairment across the lifespan, contributing to anxiety, challenging behaviors, reduced community participation, and school/workplace difficulties. However, relatively little is known about its phenomenology or neurocognitive underpinnings. Read More

Bioessays 2020 12 10;42(12):e2000099. Epub 2020 Nov 10.

Brain and Cognition, Dept of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

We propose that synesthetic cross-activation between the primary auditory cortex and the anatomically adjacent insula may help explain two puzzling conditions-autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) and misophonia-in which quotidian sounds involuntarily trigger strong emotional responses. In ASMR the sounds engender relaxation, while in misophonia they trigger an aversive response. The insula both plays an important role in autonomic nervous system control and integrates multiple interoceptive maps representing the physiological state of the body to substantiate a dynamic representation of emotional wellbeing. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2020 28;11:847. Epub 2020 Aug 28.

Center for Misophonia and Emotion Regulation, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States.

Misophonia is a newly described condition characterized by heightened emotional reactivity (e.g., anger, anxiety, and disgust) to common repetitive sounds (e. Read More

Prim Care Companion CNS Disord 2020 Sep 24;22(5). Epub 2020 Sep 24.

Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.

Am J Audiol 2020 Dec 21;29(4):685-690. Epub 2020 Sep 21.

School of Audiology and Speech Language, Pathology, Bharati Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University), Pune, Maharashtra, India.

Purpose Misophonia is a sound tolerance disorder condition in certain sounds that trigger intense emotional or physiological responses. While some persons may experience misophonia, a few patients suffer from misophonia. However, there is a dearth of literature on audiological assessment and management of persons with misophonia. Read More

Psychiatr Q 2020 Aug 23. Epub 2020 Aug 23.

Hearing Sciences, Division of Clinical Neurosciences, School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.

Misophonia is a condition of abnormal emotional responses to specific auditory stimuli. There is limited information available on the prevalence of this condition. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of misophonia in an undergraduate medical student population at the University of Nottingham. Read More

Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020 07 29;17(15). Epub 2020 Jul 29.

Faculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, 00-183 Warsaw, Poland.

Misophonia is an underexplored condition that significantly decreases the quality of life of those who suffer from it. It has neurological and physiological correlates and is associated with a variety of psychiatric symptoms; however, a growing body of data suggests that it is a discrete disorder. While comorbid diagnoses among people with misophonia have been a matter of research interest for many years there is no data on the frequency of misophonia among people with psychiatric disorders. Read More

Prim Care Companion CNS Disord 2020 04 30;22(3). Epub 2020 Apr 30.

Department of Psychiatry, University of Western Ontario, c/o Parkwood Institute, Mental Health Care Bldg, 550 Wellington Rd, London, Ontario N6C 0A7 Canada.

PLoS One 2020 15;15(4):e0231390. Epub 2020 Apr 15.

Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC (location AMC), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Objective: Analyze a large sample with detailed clinical data of misophonia subjects in order to determine the psychiatric, somatic and psychological nature of the condition.

Methods: This observational study of 779 subjects with suspected misophonia was conducted from January 2013 to May 2017 at the outpatient-clinic of the Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, the Netherlands. We examined DSM-IV diagnoses, results of somatic examination (general screening and hearing tests), and 17 psychological questionnaires (e. Read More

Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020 03 10;17(5). Epub 2020 Mar 10.

Faculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, 00-183 Warsaw, Poland.

: Misophonia is a condition related to experiencing psychophysiological sensations when exposed to specific sound triggers. In spite of progress in research on the subject, a fully validated questionnaire assessing misophonia has not been published yet. The goal of this study was to create and validate a new questionnaire to measure misophonia. Read More

Sci Rep 2020 Feb 28;10(1):4066. Epub 2020 Feb 28.

Amsterdam University Medical Centers, University of Amsterdam, Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. Read More

PLoS One 2020 16;15(1):e0227118. Epub 2020 Jan 16.

Department of Psychological Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, United States of America.

The present study aimed to investigate the extent to which the severity of misophonia symptoms is linked with cognitive control under misophonia symptom-provocation circumstances in the general population sample. Participants (N = 79) completed a measure of cognitive control-a Stroop color naming task, which consists of congruent and incongruent stimuli, and requires inhibition of a prepotent response (reading a word) in the service of a less predominant response (naming a color), while listening to misophonia symptom-provocation or universally unpleasant sounds. Participants' misophonia sound sensitivity, and emotional behaviors towards trigger sounds were assessed using the Misophonia Questionnaire. Read More

Psychol Res Behav Manag 2019 23;12:991-1002. Epub 2019 Oct 23.

Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.

This article reviews the evidence related to the efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for alleviating the distress caused by tinnitus, hyperacusis and misophonia. Where available, the review was focused on meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) using either passive control groups (typically waiting list or education only) or active control groups (receiving some other form of treatment). Where data from RCTs were not available, case studies and retrospective studies were reviewed. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2019 23;10:765. Epub 2019 Oct 23.

Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Misophonia is a newly described condition in which specific ordinary sounds provoke disproportionately strong negative affect. Since evidence for psychobiological dysfunction underlying misophonia is scarce, we tested whether misophonia patients, like many patients with impulse control or obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders, show impaired ability to inhibit an ongoing motor response. We collected functional magnetic resonance imaging data during a stop signal task in 22 misophonia patients and 21 matched healthy controls. Read More

J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2020 02 19;42(1):66-75. Epub 2019 Sep 19.

Department of Psychology, Fordham University, New York, NY, USA.

: Misophonia is marked by abnormal negative reactions to specific and idiosyncratic sounds. Despite unclear etiology and diagnostic conceptualization, neuropsychology may be able to help characterize the syndrome. In the current study, we administered the Attention Network Test (ANT) under symptom provocation conditions, as well as secondary measures of concept formation, perseveration, processing speed, and frustration tolerance. Read More

Psychiatr Pol 2019 Apr 30;53(2):447-458. Epub 2019 Apr 30.

Uniwersytet Warszawski, Wydział Psychologii, Katedra Różnic Indywidualnych.

Misophonia is a new and relatively under-explored condition characterized by experiencing strong emotions (mainly anger and disgust) and a physical response (such as muscle constriction, increased heart rate) when exposed to specific sounds. Among the most frequent aversive triggers are the sounds of eating, breathing, or typing. The experience of misophonia is associated with suffering and a significant decrease in quality of life. Read More

Sci Rep 2019 05 17;9(1):7542. Epub 2019 May 17.

Amsterdam University Medical Centers, University of Amsterdam, Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Misophonia is characterized by intense rage and disgust provoked by hearing specific human sounds resulting in social isolation due to avoidance. We exposed patients with symptom provoking audiovisual stimuli to investigate brain activity of emotional responses. 21 patients with misophonia and 23 matched healthy controls were recruited at the psychiatry department of the Amsterdam UMC. Read More

Nord J Psychiatry 2019 May - Jul;73(4-5):219-228. Epub 2019 May 8.

e Psychology Department , Azad University , Mashhad , Iran.

Misophonia is a neurophysiological disorder, phenotypically characterized by heightened autonomic nervous system arousal which is accompanied by a high magnitude of emotional reactivity to repetitive and pattern-based auditory stimuli. This study identifies the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms in misophonia sufferers, the association between severity of misophonia and psychiatric symptoms, and the association between misophonia severity and gender. Fifty-two misophonia sufferers, 30 females (mean age = 40. Read More

Multisens Res 2019 01 1;32(3):197-213. Epub 2019 Jan 1.

Psychology Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, USA.

We propose that cross-sensory stimuli presenting a positive attributable source of an aversive sound can modulate negative reactions to the sound. In Experiment 1, participants rated original video sources (OVS) of eight aversive sounds (e.g. Read More

J Clin Psychol 2019 07 11;75(7):1203-1218. Epub 2019 Mar 11.

National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.

Objective: To scope the literature describing misophonia populations, management, and research opportunities.

Method: Literature searches for research studies describing patients diagnosed with misophonia, defining a patient profile, or outlining development or testing of an intervention for misophonia. A data extraction form was developed and piloted before data from each article were independently charted by two researchers. Read More

Parkinsonism Relat Disord 2019 02 4;59:117-124. Epub 2019 Feb 4.

Tic and Neurodevelopmental Movements Service (TANDeM), Children's Neurosciences Centre, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Guys and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.

Tics and stereotypies are the most common pathological repetitive complex motor behaviors occurring during the neurodevelopmental period. Although they may appear transiently during development without acquiring a pathological status, when they become chronic they may be distressing, socially impairing, or even, in the case of malignant tics, potentially physically harmful. Despite a certain similarity in their phenomenology, physicians should be able to distinguish them for their different variability over time, topographical distribution, association with sensory manifestations, and relationship with environmental triggers. Read More

Noise Health 2018 Jul-Aug;20(95):162-170

Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.

Background: Hyperacusis is intolerance of certain everyday sounds that causes significant distress and impairment in social, occupational, recreational, and other day-to-day activities.

Objective: The aim of this report is to summarize the key findings and conclusions from the Third International Conference on Hyperacusis.

Topics Covered: The main topics discussed comprise (1) diagnosis of hyperacusis and audiological evaluations, (2) neurobiological aspect of hyperacusis, (3) misophonia, (4) hyperacusis in autism spectrum disorder, (5) noise sensitivity, (6) hyperacusis-related distress and comorbid psychiatric illness, and (7) audiologist-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for hyperacusis. Read More

PeerJ 2018 6;6:e5351. Epub 2018 Aug 6.

Goldsmiths, University of London, London, United Kingdom.

Background: Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) is a sensory experience elicited by auditory and visual triggers, which so far received little attention from the scientific community. This self-reported phenomenon is described as a relaxing tingling sensation, which typically originates on scalp and spreads through a person's body. Recently it has been suggested that ASMR shares common characteristics with another underreported condition known as misophonia, where sounds trigger negative physiological, emotional and behavioural responses. Read More

Front Psychol 2018 29;9:953. Epub 2018 Jun 29.

Lab for Clinical and Integrative Neuroscience, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX, United States.

There is a growing research interest in the diagnosis rate of misophonia, a condition characterized by a negative emotional/autonomic reaction to specific everyday sounds. Diagnosis of misophonia requires a thorough case history and audiological test procedures. Associative and non-associative learning models for understanding the underlying mechanisms of misophonia have been presented. Read More

Int J Environ Res Public Health 2018 07 4;15(7). Epub 2018 Jul 4.

Department of Psychological Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119007, Singapore.

Misophonia, also known as selective sound sensitivity syndrome, is a condition characterized by strong dislike of specific sounds with accompanying distressing reactions. To date, misophonia is still poorly understood. This study aimed to identify factors associated with severity of misophonic symptoms in Singaporean psychiatric patients. Read More

Int J Audiol 2018 08 24;57(8):618-623. Epub 2018 Apr 24.

c Department of Experimental Psychology , University of Cambridge , Cambridge , UK.

Objective: To assess the prevalence of hyperacusis and severe hyperacusis among children and adolescents seen at an audiology outpatient tinnitus and hyperacusis service.

Design: This was a retrospective study. Hyperacusis was considered as present if the average uncomfortable loudness level (ULL) at 0. Read More

Braz J Otorhinolaryngol 2019 May - Jun;85(3):303-309. Epub 2018 Mar 21.

Instituto Ganz Sanchez, São Paulo, SP, Brazil; Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Otorrinolaringologia, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

Introduction: Misophonia is characterized by the aversion to very selective sounds, which evoke a strong emotional reaction. It has been inferred that misophonia, as well as tinnitus, is associated with hyperconnectivity between auditory and limbic systems. Individuals with bothersome tinnitus may have selective attention impairment, but it has not been demonstrated in case of misophonia yet. Read More

J Dev Behav Pediatr 2018 Jul/Aug;39(6):516-522

Department of Human Neurosciences, Sapienza University of Rome Via dei Sabelli, Rome, Italy.

Objective: Misophonia is a condition characterized by the dislike or hatred (miso) of specific sounds (phonia) that results in an extreme emotional response. There has been growing interest in misophonia, with emerging evidence from neurodevelopmental populations and ongoing debate regarding the psychiatric classification and the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon. This is the first article to report on misophonic experiences and associated clinical characteristics in young people with tic disorders. Read More

Behav Ther 2018 03 12;49(2):286-294. Epub 2017 Jul 12.

University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Misophonia is characterized by extreme aversive reactions to certain classes of sounds. It has recently been recognized as a condition associated with significant disability. Research has begun to evaluate psychopathological correlates of misophonia. Read More

Front Neurosci 2018 7;12:36. Epub 2018 Feb 7.

International Misophonia Research Network, New York, NY, United States.

Misophonia is a neurobehavioral syndrome phenotypically characterized by heightened autonomic nervous system arousal and negative emotional reactivity (e. g., irritation, anger, anxiety) in response to a decreased tolerance for specific sounds. Read More

Front Psychol 2017 14;8:1975. Epub 2017 Nov 14.

Misophonia Institute, Livermore, CA, United States.

PeerJ 2017 6;5:e3846. Epub 2017 Oct 6.

Department of Psychology, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK.

The autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) is an atypical sensory phenomenon involving electrostatic-like tingling sensations in response to certain sensory, primarily audio-visual, stimuli. The current study used an online questionnaire, completed by 130 people who self-reported experiencing ASMR. We aimed to extend preliminary investigations into the experience, and establish key multisensory factors contributing to the successful induction of ASMR through online media. Read More

Prim Care Companion CNS Disord 2017 Sep 14;19(5). Epub 2017 Sep 14.

Daybreak Treatment Center, Germantown, Tennessee, USA.

Eur Psychiatry 2017 Apr 30;41S:S681. Epub 2017 Jun 30.

Duke University, Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Durham, USA.

This article has been removed: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (https://www.elsevier.com/about/our-business/policies/article-withdrawal). Read More

Braz J Otorhinolaryngol 2018 Sep - Oct;84(5):553-559. Epub 2017 Jul 29.

Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Pós-graduação em Ciências da Reabilitação, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.

Introduction: Misophonia is a recently described, poorly understood and neglected condition. It is characterized by strong negative reactions of hatred, anger or fear when subjects have to face some selective and low level repetitive sounds. The most common ones that trigger such aversive reactions are those elicited by the mouth (chewing gum or food, popping lips) or the nose (breathing, sniffing, and blowing) or by the fingers (typing, kneading paper, clicking pen, drumming on the table). Read More

Front Behav Neurosci 2017 29;11:127. Epub 2017 Jun 29.

Wellcome Trust Centre for NeuroimagingLondon, United Kingdom.

Front Behav Neurosci 2017 2;11:111. Epub 2017 Jun 2.

Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands.

Dev Cogn Neurosci 2018 01 18;29:72-77. Epub 2017 May 18.

Autism Research Centre, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 8AH, UK.

Although the DSM-5 added sensory symptoms as a criterion for ASC, there is a group of children who display sensory symptoms but do not have ASC; children with sensory processing disorder (SPD). To be able to differentiate these two disorders, our aim was to evaluate whether children with ASC show more sensory symptomatology and/or different cognitive styles in empathy and systemizing compared to children with SPD and typically developing (TD) children. The study included 210 participants: 68 children with ASC, 79 with SPD and 63 TD children. Read More

Med Hypotheses 2017 Jun 3;103:109-117. Epub 2017 May 3.

University of British Columbia, Canada. Electronic address:

Misophonia, a phenomenon first described in the audiology literature, is characterized by intense emotional reactions (e.g., anger, rage, anxiety, disgust) in response to highly specific sounds, particularly sounds of human origin such as oral or nasal noises made by other people (e. Read More

J Clin Psychol 2018 03 31;74(3):453-479. Epub 2017 May 31.

Maastricht University.

Objective: We aim to elucidate misophonia, a condition in which particular sounds elicit disproportionally strong aversive reactions.

Method: A large online study extensively surveyed personal, developmental, and clinical characteristics of over 300 misophonics.

Results: Most participants indicated that their symptoms started in childhood or early teenage years. Read More

J Affect Disord 2017 08 18;217:289-294. Epub 2017 Apr 18.

Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center (AMC), University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands; The Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address:

Background: Misophonia is a psychiatric disorder in which ordinary human sounds like smacking or chewing provoke intense anger and disgust. Despite the high burden of this condition, to date there is no evidence-based treatment available. In this study we evaluated the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and investigated whether clinical or demographic characteristics predicted treatment response. Read More

Curr Biol 2017 02 2;27(4):527-533. Epub 2017 Feb 2.

Institute of Neuroscience, Medical School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK; Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, 12 Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK.

Misophonia is an affective sound-processing disorder characterized by the experience of strong negative emotions (anger and anxiety) in response to everyday sounds, such as those generated by other people eating, drinking, chewing, and breathing [1-8]. The commonplace nature of these sounds (often referred to as "trigger sounds") makes misophonia a devastating disorder for sufferers and their families, and yet nothing is known about the underlying mechanism. Using functional and structural MRI coupled with physiological measurements, we demonstrate that misophonic subjects show specific trigger-sound-related responses in brain and body. Read More

Handb Clin Neurol 2016 ;139:367-378

Department of Otolaryngology, Colchester Hospital University, Colchester, UK.

There are a number of auditory symptom syndromes that can develop without an organic basis. Some of these, such as nonorganic hearing loss, affect populations similar to those presenting with functional somatosensory and motor symptoms, while others, such as musical hallucination, affect populations with a significantly different demographic and require different treatment strategies. Many of these conditions owe their origin to measurably abnormal peripheral sensory pathology or brain network activity, but their pathological impact is often due, at least in part, to overamplification of the salience of these phenomena. Read More

Ugeskr Laeger 2015 Nov;177(48):V04150309

A 14-year-old girl, who was diagnosed with OCD when she was 11-year-old, experienced emotional reactions and autonomic arousal in response to specific human-made sounds. At first she thought that these symptoms were part of her OCD, but it became clear to her that she suffered from misophonia - a disorder not yet classified. Read More

Australas Psychiatry 2016 Apr 27;24(2):195-7. Epub 2015 Oct 27.

Visiting Medical Officer and Clinical Leader Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Service, Redcliffe-Caboolture Mental Health Service, Caboolture Hospital, Caboolture, QLD, Australia

Objective: To explore the condition of misophonia, its definition, possible neurological correlates, its associated morbidity, its possible psychiatric relevance and potential treatment.

Method: Provision of an illustrative case vignette and a review of the limited literature.

Results: Misophonia is a symptom associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorders and may be a syndrome in itself associated with significant distress and avoidance. Read More

Rev Med Suisse 2015 Aug;11(482):1504-5

Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat 2015 18;11:2117-23. Epub 2015 Aug 18.

School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston Brain Centre, Wellcome Trust Laboratory for MEG Studies, Aston University, Birmingham, UK ; Children's Epilepsy Surgery Programme, The Birmingham Children's Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK.

Misophonia is characterized by a negative reaction to a sound with a specific pattern and meaning to a given individual. In this paper, we review the clinical features of this relatively common yet underinvestigated condition, with focus on co-occurring neurodevelopmental disorders. Currently available data on the putative pathophysiology of the condition can inform our understanding and guide the diagnostic process and treatment approach. Read More