"I was part of the sceptical community myself until we saw patients in the clinic and understood how strikingly similar the features are."

One misophonia sufferer said her GP laughed when she told him about her symptoms.

Olana Tansley-Hancock, 29, from Ashford, Kent, was eight years old when family meals became unbearable for her.

She said: "The noise of my family eating forced me to retreat to my own bedroom for meals.

"I can only describe it as a feeling of wanting to punch people in the face when I heard the noise of them eating - and anyone who knows me will say that doesn't sound like me."

The issue came to a head when she went to university and had to move train carriages seven times because the noise of people eating and rustling papers was unbearable.

"When I saw my GP at the time, he laughed at me," she said.

"Then I tried a counsellor but in my case, that made it worse as it made me even more sensitive to sound."

After researching misophonia, she has changed her lifestyle, reducing her caffeine and alcohol intake and uses headphones when visiting the cinema.

She said:"This research is a huge relief as it shows there is a physical basis for misophonia which should help others understand the condition.