Browsing by Subject "äänihuulitäyttö"

Goals: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of vocal fold augmentation on the acoustic and perceptual aspects of voice among the elderly. Vocal fold atrophy caused by aging can be treated surgically by injecting temporary substance into the vocal folds. This study examined the acoustic and perceptual effects of vocal fold augmentation on patients with atrophy. Methods: This retrospective study consisted of acoustic analysis and perceptual evaluation of 13 patients diagnosed with vocal fold atrophy. All 13 patients had undergone a vocal fold augmentation with the temporary injection material CaHA. All 13 were recorded and analysed twice (before and after treatment) and a few subjects were recorded and analysed in a third, follow-up session. All recordings and analyses were made by a standard procedure. The repeated acoustic measures consisted of fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer and HNR. The perceptual evaluations were made by two experienced speech therapists who rated the voice samples using the GRBAS scale. Statistical tests using data before and after the vocal fold augmentation were completed for each parameter. Statistical analysis was performed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test for fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer and HNR. The perceptual ratings were likewise analysed statistically by Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results and conclusion: There was no significant difference between pre- and post- acoustic parameters (F0, jitter, shimmer, HNR). Individual differences in the acoustic parameters between the repeated measures showed improvement on several subjects. These improvements were not significant enough due to the small sample size. From the perceptual ratings with the GRBAS scale only Strain showed statistical significance as a treatment outcome. The findings of this study showed varying results of the effect of vocal fold augmentation on both the acoustic and perceptual aspects of voice among the elderly. This study revealed new information about the fundamental frequency (F0) of the elderly Finnish speakers. Several studies on different languages have reported the rising of the F0 among the elderly but similar studies with Finnish speakers have not been conducted before. The preliminary data of the decrease in fundamental frequency on some subjects after treatment suggest that vocal fold augmentation has been effective. Future research should involve versatile acoustic parameters together with the perceptual and self-evaluations.