The Prevalence of Misophonia and Its Relationship with Obsessive-compulsive Disorder, Anxiety, and Depression in Undergraduate Students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences: A Cross-Sectional Study.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional observational study
PubMed 36274664 · doi:10.30476/IJCBNM.2022.92902.1888
What was done
A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in October 2020 among 390 undergraduate students at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences using relative and systematic sampling. Participants completed self-administered tools: a demographic questionnaire, a misophonia questionnaire (threshold score of 7 or higher), the Beck Anxiety Inventory, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory. Analyses included Chi-square tests and Spearman correlation coefficients.
What was found
Of 390 participants, 93 (23.8%) met the cutoff for misophonia. Among those 93 individuals, 37 (39.8%) screened positive for obsessive-compulsive disorder, 8 (8.6%) for anxiety, and 9 (9.7%) for depression. Misophonia had a statistically significant direct positive correlation with obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression (all P < 0.001). Numerical correlation coefficients were not reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
This study documents the prevalence of misophonia in a university student sample and demonstrates significant co-occurrence with obsessive-compulsive and affective symptoms, suggesting that screening across these related domains may be warranted.
Limits
The cross-sectional design cannot establish causality or temporal sequence between misophonia and psychiatric symptoms. Outcomes were measured solely by screening questionnaires without structured clinical diagnostic interviews. The population was limited to undergraduate medical sciences students at a single institution in Iran, limiting generalizability.
Cited by
- context Phonophobia is more prevalent in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder or related personality traits.