Many people impacted by COVID-19 experienced changes in their sense of smell, taste, hearing, balance and in some cases, tinnitus, ‘ringing’ in the ears. Among the various causes of tinnitus is stress. What’s unclear, however, is whether the psychological impacts of the pandemic such as stress actually worsened tinnitus. Researchers assessed whether the severity of tinnitus, as measured using ratings of tinnitus loudness, annoyance, and effect on life, was influenced by the lockdown related to pandemic. Results do not support the idea that the pandemic led to a worsening of tinnitus and the mean scores did not differ significantly for the groups seen prior to the pandemic and during lockdown.