Logopedics Phoniatrics Vocology最新文献

Introduction: This study investigates the relationship between the morphological characteristics of the pharyngoesophageal segment (PES), communication experiences, and the acoustic parameters of the tracheoesophageal (TE) voice.

Methods: A total of 55 patients who had undergone total laryngectomy were enrolled in this study between July 2020 and October 2023 in a Department of Otorhinolaryngology at a University Hospital in Croatia. High-speed videoendoscopy (HSV) images of the PES mucosa, an objective assessment of the voice, and a self-assessment questionnaire were analysed.

Results: HSV-based visualisation of PES was clearer in individuals who both self-rated their voice more positively and were rated similarly by a Speech and Language Therapist. The most common shape of PES during the open phase was split side-to-side. The Self-Evaluation of Communication Experiences after Laryngectomy (SECEL:HR) questionnaire showed that the majority of patients were well rehabilitated and satisfied with their voice. A significant correlation was found between the fundamental frequency (f_o), jitter and shimmer and the SECEL:HR questionnaire. The visibility and shape of the PES as well as the amount of saliva could be associated with the reported f_o and the quality of the TE voice.

Conclusion: A better insight into the phonatory movement of the PES mucosa in laryngectomised patients could allow us to better assess the patient's abilities and adjust the duration of voice therapy for each patient. However, due to the high variability of anatomical and morphological variations as well as acoustic measurements limiting the final results, further analyses are needed to clarify the different questions raised.

Introduction: This descriptive study investigated the immediate individual effects of intensive group speech intervention on speech, health-related quality of life, and satisfaction in adolescents born with a cleft (lip and) palate (CP ± L) in the Philippines.

Methods: Four Filipino adolescents with a repaired CP ± L (age range = 17 to 23 years) were included. They presented with at least one cleft-related speech sound error. They received 6 h of intensive group speech intervention over 4 consecutive days (i.e. 1 h and 30 min of therapy each day). Pre- and post-intervention outcomes were collected for speech, health-related quality of life, and satisfaction with group intervention. Individual participant data were reported.

Results: The speech of all four participants improved to a clinically relevant degree for the percentage correctly produced consonants (PCC). Speech understandability and acceptability also improved in every participant. PCC scores of two participants were on a level with peers following the group sessions.

Discussion: Speech and health-related quality of life outcomes improved in all four participants after intensive group intervention. However, not everyone reached the level of peers following 6 h of intervention. Participants who presented with a combination of cleft-related speech sound errors might have benefited from a larger intervention dosage.

Purpose: This clinically based study aimed to explore and describe language ability in 5-12-year-old children with new-onset epilepsy.Participants and methods: Twenty-one consecutively recruited children (eleven boys, ten girls) with new-onset epilepsy, were assessed using Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals, fourth edition (CELF-4) and additional tests for verbal fluency/word retrieval and phonology. In addition, caregivers rated their child's speech, language, and communication in everyday context. Based on available tests and clinical observation, an overall evaluation of language ability was made to distinguish children with language disorders and children with language difficulties from those with language abilities within the normal range. Language disorder was diagnosed following the ICD-10 criteria. The cutoff for language difficulties was set at 1 standard deviation below the normative mean on the CELF-4 Core Language Score and additional indices.

Results: Out of twenty-one children, ten (47.5%) met the criteria for a language disorder diagnosis according to ICD-10. Another five (24%) had language difficulties but did not meet the criteria for a language disorder diagnosis according to ICD-10. Hence a total of fifteen (71.5%) children had an impaired language ability affecting different domains of language, including receptive language, language memory, and semantic processing. The remaining six (28.5%) children had average language ability.

Conclusion: In this group of children with new-onset epilepsy, a large over-representation of co-existing language disorder and language difficulties was found. The findings suggest that specific language assessments for children with new-onset epilepsy are needed, to ensure that adequate interventions and support can be offered.

The everyday lives of young children with speech sound disorder (SSD) are not well described, with few studies taking a holistic view with interaction in focus. The aim of this study was to investigate how SSD affects communicative activity and participation in everyday life of four children in a Swedish context. The study involved 4 triads: 4 children with SSD aged 4 to 7, their parents (n = 4), grandmothers (n = 2) and pedagogues, i.e. preschool teachers (n = 2). The research design was a case series, including speech language tests, questionnaires and structured interviews. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) served as an analytical framework. Results showed reduced speech intelligibility in all children. Interrupted thought processes, tantrums and social withdrawal were negative effects of the SSD. Having a friend in the out-of-home environment was a facilitating factor, enabling the children with SSD use their full capacity in social interaction. When knowledge about SSD is shared in all environments, all forces that influence the child positively may be aligned in a collaborative effort and a holistic understanding can be reached. To accomplish this, ICF serves as a valuable conceptual framework.

Purpose: The analysis of acoustic parameters contributes to the characterisation of human communication development throughout the lifetime. The present paper intends to analyse suprasegmental features of European Portuguese in longitudinal conversational speech samples of three male public figures in uncontrolled environments across different ages, approximately 30 years apart.

Participants and methods: Twenty prosodic features concerning intonation, intensity, rhythm, and pause measures were extracted semi-automatically from 360 speech intervals (3-4 interviews from each speaker x 30 speech intervals x 3 speakers) lasting between 3 to 6 s.

Results: Twelve prosodic parameters presented significant age effects at least in one speaker. Group mean comparisons revealed significant differences between the youngest (i.e. 50 years) and the oldest age groups (i.e. 80 years) in seven parameters. The results from the analysis point to a lower and less variable fo, higher fo minimum, wider fo peaks, more vocal effort and more variable global intensity, slower speech and articulation rate, and also more frequent and longer pauses in older ages.

Conclusion: This longitudinal study has the potential to contribute to the characterization of the normal aging process, proving to be significant in the domains of human-machine communication, speech recognition systems, applied linguistics, or the implementation of strategies in communicative contexts with older adults.

Objective: The first aim of the study, to determine the effects of a vocal loading task (VLT) involving reading a passage at a level of 80-85 dBA_(30 cm) for 10 minute (min) on voice. The second aim is to identify the effects of three different therapeutic strategies performed immediately after the VLT on voice.

Method: The sample of the study included 32 normophonic female participants. The research procedure involved three different therapeutic strategies: sterile water nebulization, voiced oral high-frequency oscillation (VOHFO) and the combined application following three different vocal loading tasks performed for 10 min. The assessments were made using acoustic, electroglottographic, perceived vocal effort (Borg CR-10) measurement methods.

Results: The 10 min VLT did not significantly affect the acoustic (except for fundamental frequency-Fo) or electroglottographic parameters of the habitual voice, while it led to an increased level of perceived vocal effort scores and Fo values. Perturbation and perceptual effort decreased after all three therapeutic interventions, but Fo remained higher than baseline; EGG-contact quotient (CQ) decreased after VOHFO-inclusive therapeutic interventions and perceptual effort level did not decrease after nebulization but decreased after VOHFO-inclusive interventions.

Conclusion: The 10 min VLT, which was of a short duration, led to an increased level of perceived vocal effort scores and Fo values. In addition, all therapeutic interventions were found to decrease perturbation and perceived vocal effort. However, according to the EGG-CQ data, the addition of therapeutic factors such as VOHFO to superficial vocal fold hydration procedures may further enhance their beneficial effects on the voice.

Purpose: We propose that rigorous measurement practices combined with frameworks focused on functional capacity can transform physiological variability, traditionally dismissed as "noise," into diagnostic information for precision-based voice care. A conceptual framework integrating vocal capacity, demand response, reserve, and recovery enables individualized monitoring, predictive risk assessment, and proactive intervention, mirroring progress in cardiology and orthopedics where variability became diagnostic. Applied to voice, this approach can transform clinical practice: a teacher's inconsistent perturbation may signal depleted reserve requiring pacing; a singer's instability may reflect insufficient reserve under rehearsal load, guiding recovery scheduling; and a neurological patient's fluctuations may indicate variable demand response, informing targeted intervention.

Conclusions: Variability-informed models can establish individual baselines, track change trajectories, and identify functional thresholds before overt disorder emerges. Embracing physiological variability offers a path to align clinical strategies with functional sustainability, transforming uncertainty into actionable insight for research and clinical practice.

Effective voice education promotes healthy voice use, particularly for kindergarten teachers in demanding environments. This study assessed the effectiveness of a brief, workplace-based voice education program for the preschool teachers. Teachers were quasi-randomly assigned based on work schedules to either the Direct Voice Training Group (N = 31), which received a four-hour face-to-face training session and an educational booklet, or the Educational Booklet Only Group (N = 45). Outcomes were measured using the Vocal Fatigue Index (VFI) and blinded perceptual voice quality assessments via the GRBAS scale at baseline and three months post-intervention. Nonparametric Wilcoxon signed-rank tests assessed statistical significance, with effect sizes (r) calculated. Both groups improved significantly, but the Direct Voice Training Group showed broader improvements, with small to medium effect sizes (r = 0.25-0.38), whereas the Booklet Only Group had limited improvements (r < 0.3). Blinded evaluations confirmed greater benefits for the direct training group. These findings highlight the value of brief, targeted interventions for occupational vocal health, though small to medium effect sizes suggest that more intensive interventions may be required for clinically significant outcomes.

Purpose: This study examines differences in intrinsic laryngeal muscle control during Mandarin vowel production between native Mandarin speakers and advanced South Korean learners. By analyzing vocal fold vibrations and muscle activation patterns, it provides a biomechanical perspective on second language phonetic challenges.

Method: Twenty native Mandarin speakers (control) and twenty advanced South Korean learners (experimental), all from the same university, participated in the study. Participants produced monosyllabic words while formant frequencies were recorded. A computational vocal fold-airway model simulated vowel production, focusing on the activation of the cricothyroid (CT), thyroarytenoid (TA), and lateral cricoarytenoid (LC) muscles. Simulated formant frequencies were compared with actual recordings to identify muscle control differences.

Results: Native speakers exhibited higher CT and TA activation for /a/ and /i/, while South Korean learners showed reduced activation of these muscles and increased reliance on the LC muscle. For /u/, the native speakers' model revealed lower overall muscle activation, whereas learners over-activated all three muscles.

Conclusions: The findings reveal distinct laryngeal control patterns between native and non-native speakers, emphasizing the role of biomechanical modeling in second language phonetics research. By identifying specific muscle activation differences, this study provides insights into the physiological basis of vowel articulation challenges and lays the groundwork for future research on cross-linguistic phonetic and phonemic acquisition.

Introduction: This study investigated why teachers with voice disorders continue teaching by surveying their motives described in social capital theory.

Methods: Teachers were asked to rate their motives for continued teaching even with voice disorders using online surveys. The five key motives (social capital framework) were: Motive #1 (selfishness), Motive #2 (internal validation), Motive #3 (external validation), Motive #4 (transcendence or altruism), and Motive #5 (belonging).

Results: As teachers' income increased, so did the relative importance of the transcendence motive. Income maintenance (selfishness) accounted for 47% of the total motivation, with teachers with a master's degree and higher incomes being less likely to prioritize this motive. Teachers reporting bad voice quality were more likely to prioritize income (selfishness) and less likely to be motivated by helping others (altruism) or feel connected to other people (belonging).

Conclusion: Voice problems can negatively impact a teacher's sense of fulfilment and motivation beyond financial constraints. These findings highlight the need for implementing preventive measures for voice disorders in schools that can address voice problems before they significantly affect teachers' performance and students' learning. Moreover, competitive teacher salaries and benefits may create a supportive environment where educators feel empowered to focus on their students' needs.