Immediate Effects of the Semi-Occluded Ventilation Mask on Subjects Diagnosed With Functional Dysphonia and Subjects With Normal Voices

The mucus layer on the vocal folds was examined by videostrobolaryngoscopy in patients with laryngeal tension-fatigue syndrome, a chronic functional dysphonia due to vocal abuse and misuse. Besides the findings in previous reports (such as abnormal glottal closure, phase or amplitude asymmetry, and the irregular mucosal wave), the vocal folds during vibration had an uneven mucus surface. The occurrence of an uneven mucus layer on vocal folds was significantly greater in subjects with this voice disorder (83% or 250 of 301 patients in this series) than in those without voice disorders (18.5% or 5 of 27). The increase of mucus viscosity, mucus aggregation, and the formation of rough surfaces on the vocal folds alter the mechanical properties that contribute to vibration of the cover of the vocal folds, and thereby worsen the symptoms of dysphonia in patients with laryngeal tension-fatigue syndrome.

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Maximum phonation times and vital capacity in dysphonic women

Revista CEFAC ◽

10.1590/1982-021620182050818 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 20 (5) ◽

pp. 632-639

Author(s):

Aline Costa Leite ◽

Mara Keli Christmann ◽

Carla Franco Hoffmann ◽

Carla Aparecida Cielo

Keyword(s):

Vital Capacity ◽

Speech Therapy ◽

Adult Women ◽

Young Adult Women ◽

Significance Level ◽

Functional Dysphonia ◽

Medical Reports ◽

Voice Use ◽

Professional Voice ◽

Therapy Treatment

ABSTRACT Objective: to verify the correlation between vital capacity and maximum phonation times of /ė/ (unvoiced) and /s/, as well as compare and relate them with the professional voice use and age in women with functional or organic-functional dysphonia. Methods: a retrospective research with 524 records of dysphonic patients from a school clinic, including young adult women with a speech-language diagnosis of functional or organic-functional dysphonia based on medical reports. Neurological and psychiatric alterations, previous speech therapy treatment, symptoms of flu or allergies on the day of evaluation, pulmonary disease, organic dysphonia diagnosis, and hearing loss, were excluded. The sample resulted in 14 women with functional dysphonia and 21 with organic-functional dysphonia. Data on professional voice use, as well as results for vital capacity and maximum phonation times were collected. The data were statistically analyzed at a 5% significance level. Results: There was a positive correlation for both groups of dysphonic patients between the maximum phonation times of /ė/ and of /s/, as well as the maximum phonation times of /ė/, /s/, and vital capacity. Higher values for vital capacity and maximum times of /s/ and /ė/ for voice professionals were seen. The maximum phonation times of /ė/ were lower than those of /s/. Conclusion: as the maximum phonation times of /ė/ increased, the maximum phonation times of /s/ and the vital capacity also augmented in both groups, demonstrating the interrelation among these variables; there was no relation with the other variables studied.

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Voice re-education and its evaluation through digital signal processing: A case study

Loquens ◽

10.3989/loquens.2017.040 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 040

Author(s):

Zulema Santana-López ◽

Óscar Domínguez-Jaén ◽

Jesús B. Alonso ◽

María Del Carmen Mato-Carrodeguas

Keyword(s):

Voice Quality ◽

Quality Measurement ◽

Digital Signal ◽

Communication Process ◽

Time Frequency ◽

Voice Signal ◽

Functional Dysphonia ◽

Before And After ◽

Voice Pathologies ◽

The Voice

Voice pathologies, caused either by functional dysphonia or organic lesions, or even by just an inappropriate emission of the voice, may lead to vocal abuse, affecting significantly the communication process. The present study is based on the case of a single patient diagnosed with myasthenia gravis (Erb-Goldflam syndrome). In this case, this affection has caused, among other disruptions, a dysarthria. For its treatment, a technique for the education and re-education of the voice has been used, based on a resonator element: the cellophane screen. This article shows the results obtained in the patient after applying a vocal re-education technique called the Cimardi Method: the Cellophane Screen, which is a pioneering technique in this field. Changes in the patient’s voice signal have been studied before and after the application of the Cimardi Method in different domains of study: time-frequency, spectrum, and cepstrum. Moreover, parameters for voice quality measurement, such as shimmer, jitter and harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR), have been used to quantify the results obtained with the Cimardi Method. Once the results were analyzed, it has been observed that the Cimardi Method helps to produce a more natural and free vocal emission, which is very useful as a rehabilitation therapy for those people presenting certain vocal disorders.

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Do Standard Instrumental Acoustic, Perceptual, and Subjective Voice Outcomes Indicate Therapy Success in Patients With Functional Dysphonia?

Journal of Voice ◽

10.1016/j.jvoice.2017.11.014 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (3) ◽

pp. 317-324 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Stephanie Reetz ◽

Joerg E. Bohlender ◽

Meike Brockmann-Bauser

Keyword(s):

Functional Dysphonia ◽

Therapy Success

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Presbylarynx, Functional Voice Disorders, Muscle Tension Dysphonia

10.2310/ot.7065 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Elizabeth Erickson-DiRenzo ◽

Christine M. Kim ◽

C. Kwang Sung Sung

Keyword(s):

Muscle Tension ◽

Voice Disorders ◽

Neuromuscular Control ◽

Vocal Folds ◽

Voice Therapy ◽

Type I ◽

Muscle Tension Dysphonia ◽

Functional Dysphonia ◽

Age Related ◽

Type I Thyroplasty

Presbylarynx refers to age-related structural changes of the vocal folds that include muscle atrophy, reduced neuromuscular control, loss of superficial lamina propria layer, and reduced pliability. The changes result in thin and bowed vocal folds, increased vocal effort requirements, breathy voice, change in habitual pitch, and strain. The primary treatment options are voice therapy focused on strengthening breath support and the intrinsic muscles of the larynx, and optimization of resonance; injection augmentation of the vocal folds; and type I thyroplasty. Functional dysphonia is defined as change in voice quality in the absence of structural or neurological abnormalities of the larynx. Muscle tension dysphonia (MTD) is a subtype of functional voice disorders and involves laryngeal muscle tension imbalance due to excessive or dysregulated activation resulting often in strained or breathy voice. MTD can be divided into primary (psychological etiology or vocal misuse) and secondary (compensatory for organic laryngeal pathology). The mainstay of treatment for MTD is voice therapy, along with medical or surgical treatment of the underlying vocal pathology in secondary MTD. Mutational falsetto, or puberphonia, is a functional voice disorder where a high-pitched, pre-adolescent voice fails to transition to the lower pitch of adulthood. This review contains 5 figures, 7 tables, 4 videos and 10 references Key Words: Presbylarynx, Injection augmentation, Type I thyroplasty, Primary muscle tension dysphonia, Secondary muscle tension dysphonia, Muscle tension patterns, Manual circumlaryngeal therapy, Functional dysphonia, Mutational falsetto

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