scholarly journals Multi-Dimensional Variation in Adult Speech as a Function of Age

Languages ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 176
Author(s):  
Cécile Fougeron ◽  
Fanny Guitard-Ivent ◽  
Véronique Delvaux

We present a multidimensional acoustic report describing variation in speech productions on data collected from 500 francophone adult speakers (20 to 93 y.o.a.) as a function of age. In this cross-sectional study, chronological age is considered as a continuous variable while oral productions, in reading and speech-like tasks, are characterized via 22 descriptors related to voice quality, pitch, vowel articulation and vocalic system organization, time-related measures and temporal organization, as well as maximal performances in speech-like tasks. In a first analysis, we detail how each descriptor varies according to the age of the speaker, for male and female speakers separately. In a second analysis, we explore how chronological age is, in turn, predicted by the combination of all descriptors. Overall, results confirm that with increasing age, speakers show more voice instability, sex-dependent pitch changes, slower speech and articulation rates, slower repetition rates and less complexity effects in maximal performance tasks. A notable finding of this study is that some of these changes are continuous throughout adulthood while other appear either at old age or in early adulthood. Chronological age appears only moderately indexed in speech, mainly through speech rate parameters. We discuss these results in relation with the notion of attrition and with other possible factors at play, in an attempt to better capture the multidimensional nature of the notion of “age”.


2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 227-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine L. Lortie ◽  
Isabelle Deschamps ◽  
Matthieu J. Guitton ◽  
Pascale Tremblay

Purpose The factors that influence the evaluation of voice in adulthood, as well as the consequences of such evaluation on social interactions, are not well understood. Here, we examined the effect of listeners' age and the effect of talker age, sex, and smoking status on the auditory-perceptual evaluation of voice, voice-related psychosocial attributions, and perceived speech tempo. We also examined the voice dimensions affecting the propensity to engage in social interactions. Method Twenty-five younger (age 19–37 years) and 25 older (age 51–74 years) healthy adults participated in this cross-sectional study. Their task was to evaluate the voice of 80 talkers. Results Statistical analyses revealed limited effects of the age of the listener on voice evaluation. Specifically, older listeners provided relatively more favorable voice ratings than younger listeners, mainly in terms of roughness. In contrast, the age of the talker had a broader impact on voice evaluation, affecting auditory-perceptual evaluations, psychosocial attributions, and perceived speech tempo. Some of these talker differences were dependent upon the sex of the talker and his or her smoking status. Finally, the results also show that voice-related psychosocial attribution was more strongly associated with the propensity of the listener to engage in social interactions with a person than auditory-perceptual dimensions and perceived speech tempo, especially for the younger adults. Conclusions These results suggest that age has a broad influence on voice evaluation, with a stronger impact for talker age compared with listener age. While voice-related psychosocial attributions may be an important determinant of social interactions, perceived voice quality and speech tempo appear to be less influential. Supplemental Materials https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.5844102



2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui-xia Yang ◽  
Yu Zhong ◽  
Wei-hua Lv ◽  
Feng Zhang ◽  
Hong Yu

Abstract Background The relationship between thyroid nodules (TNs) and adiposity is controversial. This paper describes a cross-sectional investigation performed to determine the existence of any such relationship. To assess adiposity, body mass index (BMI) and visceral fat area (VFA) were utilized. Methods Between January 1, 2017 and March 3, 2019. Three thousand five hundred thirty four healthy people were examined using thyroid ultrasonography, visceral fat and anthropometric measurements, laboratory tests and questionnaire interview. Binary logistic regression analyses were used. Results Of the 3534 healthy subjects, 58.69% (2074/3534) of the subjects had TNs. A total of 55.91% (1976/3534) had BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 and 39.67% (1402/3534) had VFA ≥ 100 cm2. After adjustment to address confounders, BMI-based overweight and obesity levels only correlated with higher risk TNs when used as a continuous variable (OR = 1.031, 95% CI: 1.008–1.055, P = 0.008), while VFA was both a continuous variable (OR = 1.003, 95% CI: 1.000–1.005, P = 0.034) and a categorical variable (OR = 1.198, 95% CI: 1.014–1.417, P = 0.034) associated with significantly elevated risk of TNs. Analyzing the subgroups, BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 (OR = 1.500, 95% CI: 1.110–2.026, P = 0.008) was significantly correlated with TN risk in individuals with TG ≥ 1.7 mmol/L. VFA ≥ 100 cm2 correlated with the TN risk irrespective of age (< 50 years: OR = 1.374, 95% CI: 1.109–1.703, P = 0.004; ≥ 50 years: OR = 1.367, 95% CI: 1.063–1.759, P = 0.015) and in the following subgroups: women (OR = 4.575, 95% CI: 2.558–8.181, P = 0.000), FBG ≥ 6.1 mmol/L (OR = 1.522, 95% CI: 1.048–2.209, P = 0.027), and TG ≥ 1.7 mmol/L (OR = 1.414, 95% CI: 1.088–1.838, P = 0.010). Conclusions Adiposity correlates with TNs. To assess TN risk in Chinese individuals, VFA is better than BMI.



2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Alikhani ◽  
Helene Morin ◽  
Stephanie Matte ◽  
Pouriya Alikhani ◽  
Cécile Tremblay ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to establish the prevalence of lipodystrophy and its association to cumulative exposure to antiretroviral drugs. Method We conducted a cross sectional study in all HIV- infected patients attending the HIV clinic in the Centre hospitalier universitaire de Montréal (CHUM) with DEXA scan. Lipodystrophy was defined as a trunk/limb fat ratio ≥ 1.5. Association between cumulative exposure to antiretroviral (measured in years of use) with trunk/limb fat ratio (coded as a continuous variable) was assessed using univariate and multivariate linear regression for each antiretroviral drug with at least 40 exposed patients. Results One hundred sixty-six patients were included. Seventy-five percent were male, median age was 56 years, 67% were Caucasian. Overall, prevalence of lipodystrophy was 47%, with a mean trunk/limb fat ratio of 1.87, SD = 1.03, min = 0.6 and max = 5.87. Each 10-year increase in age and HIV infection duration was associated with an average increase of 0.24 and 0.34 for the trunk/limb fat ratio respectively. (p = 0.003, p = 0.002, respectively) Patients classified as lipodystrophic were more likely to be diabetic (50 vs. 28%, p = 0.07) and to have dyslipidemia (47 vs. 19%, p = 0.01). According to viral load at DEXA test, each one log increase was associated with less probability (0.7) of lipodystrophy. (p = 0.01) Among ARV drugs tested, there was an association between years of use of d4T, ritonavir and raltegravir and higher trunk/limb fat ratio (indicating more lipodystrophy) (p < 0.05). Conclusion Lipodystrophy is very common in HIV infected patients and is correlated with duration of some new antiretroviral drugs.



2007 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 519-527 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Falasca ◽  
C. Ucciferri ◽  
L. Manzoli ◽  
P. Mancino ◽  
E. Pizzigallo ◽  
...  

In this cross-sectional study, we evaluate potential predictors of Metabolic Syndrome (MS) in a group of 54 Caucasian chronically HIV-infected patients with lipodystrophy. According to ATP-III criteria, 22 patients were affected by MS and 32 were not. The mean age of the sample was 41.2 ± 8.6 years, and most patients were males (74.1%); the two groups were homogeneous for gender, age, viro-immunologic status and the duration of antiviral therapy. The independent association between MS and several factors including demographic characteristics, type of highly-active antiviral therapy (HAART), viro-immunologic response, common cardiovascular risk factors (including Framingham scores), and selected cytokines (IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10 and IL-18), was investigated using stepwise forward logistic regression. At multivariate analysis, the only independent predictors of the metabolic syndrome were triglycerides and IL-18. A10 mg/dL increase in triglycerides corresponds to an adjusted risk ratio for MS of 1.11 (95% IC: 1.04–1.19); and patients in the top tertile of IL-18 (those with IL-18 ≥ 530 pg/L) had more than three times the likelihood of MS, as compared to the bottom and medium fertiles of IL-18 (patients with IL-18 < 530 pg/L). This relationship was not attenuated by the inclusion of any other variable in the multivariate model. However, the association between metabolic syndrome and IL-18 is no longer significant when IL-18 is treated as a continuous variable (trend p = 0.087). Our results on HIV patients with lipodystrophy confirm previous findings on a strong independent association between IL-18 and MS in the general population. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanism of this association and its role in the development of cardiovascular disease in HIV patients.



Author(s):  
Ayesha Inam ◽  
Zubaa Akhtar ◽  
Aisha Kashif ◽  
Hamna Nadeem

Abstract Objective: To establish sample estimates of hoarding behaviour with demographic correlates in a non-clinical sample. Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted in Islamabad, Pakistan, from February to April, 2018, and comprised data collected from Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Rawalpindi after approval from the COMSATS University, Islamabad. Data was collected using a self-developed demographic sheet, along with the hoarding rating scale. Data was analysed using SPSS, Version 20. Results: Of the 375 subjects, 118(31.5%) were males and 257(68.5%) were females. The overall mean age was 42.25+/-13.007 years. Mean hoarding rating scale score was 8.34+/-6.69, with 76(20.3%) subjects falling in the clinical range of hoarding tendencies. There was a significant difference in the scores for Early Adulthood, Middle Adulthood and Late Adulthood (p<0.001). Gender comparison revealed significant difference (p<0.001). A significant positive correlation between hoarding and age was found (p<0.01) whereas a negative correlation was found between hoarding and monthly household income (p<0.01). Conclusion: Hoarding tendencies were found to be in the clinical range for one-fifth of the sample. Key Words: Hoarding disorder, Estimates, Demographics, Continuou...



2003 ◽  
Vol 121 (2) ◽  
pp. 81-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Regina Furquim de Andrade ◽  
Luciana Maluf Cervone ◽  
Fernanda Chiarion Sassi

CONTEXT: The speech rate is one of the parameters considered when investigating speech fluency and is an important variable in the assessment of individuals with communication complaints. OBJECTIVE: To correlate the stuttering severity index with one of the indices used for assessing fluency/speech rate. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Fluency and Fluency Disorders Investigation Laboratory, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo. PARTICIPANTS: Seventy adults with stuttering diagnosis. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: A speech sample from each participant containing at least 200 fluent syllables was videotaped and analyzed according to a stuttering severity index test and speech rate parameters. RESULTS: The results obtained in this study indicate that the stuttering severity and the speech rate present significant variation, i.e., the more severe the stuttering is, the lower the speech rate in words and syllables per minute. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The results suggest that speech rate is an important indicator of fluency levels and should be incorporated in the assessment and treatment of stuttering. This study represents a first attempt to identify the possible subtypes of developmental stuttering. DEFINITION: Objective tests that quantify diseases are important in their diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.



Author(s):  
Dhananjay Kumar Singh ◽  
Priyanka Kesarwani ◽  
Shivani Sinha ◽  
Vipul Kant Singh

Background: Tobacco abuse is one of the biggest curses that modern society has come across. It is not confined to any one country or region alone, but has widely afflicted the globe. The most susceptible time for initiating use of tobacco in India is adolescence and early adulthood, ages 15-24 years while some start as young as 10 years.Approximately 55,500 adolescent start using tobacco every day in India, joining the 7.7 million young people under the age of 15 who already use tobacco on a regular basis.Methods: It is a community based cross-sectional study conducted among school going adolescent boys of urban field practice area of medical college during July to September 2017. Data was collected through pretested semi-structured self -administered questionnaire given to students by the investigators. Data collected were analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) 17 software.Results: The prevalence of ever use of tobacco was 17.5% among school going adolescent boys in urban field practice area. In the present study it was observed that 174 (95.1%) adolescent boys had knowledge regarding hazards of tobacco. 110 adolescents (60.1%) had knowledge that passive smoking was harmful.Conclusions: The study suggests that the prevalence of tobacco consumption was high among school going adolescent boys in urban field practice area of medical college. The knowledge of students regarding harmful effects of tobacco was not adequate. Attitude and practice regarding tobacco consumption is also not satisfactory.



2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 3-7
Author(s):  
Muhammad Ilyas ◽  
Asma Khan ◽  
Syed Murad Ali Shah ◽  
Salman Khan ◽  
Junaid Nadeem Malik

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to determine the correlation of chronological age with the maturation stages of mandibular third molar. METHODOLOGY: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted at Sardar Begum Dental College, Gandhara University Peshawar on 384 patients from January 2018 to June 2018 and included patients having age 11-26 years with good quality Orthopantomogram showing mandibular third molar tooth germs bilaterally. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. p ≤ 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. RESULTS: Females 286 (74.5%) were predominant than males 98 (25.5%) with mean age presentation of 18.12±3.03 years. The most frequent stage of Demirjian’s stages of mandibular third molar was stage F (24.7%). Pearson correlation showed that maturation stages of mandibular third molars were significantly related to the chronological age ( r=0.446, p value=0.00). CONCLUSION: A correlation between maturation stages of mandibular third molars and chronological age existed.



2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (21) ◽  
pp. 9984
Author(s):  
Mehrdad Abdinian ◽  
Mehdi Katiraei ◽  
Hosein Zahedi ◽  
Carlo Rengo ◽  
Parisa Soltani ◽  
...  

The present study aimed to investigate the correlation between chronological age and pulp–tooth volume ratio in anterior teeth using cone beam computed tomographic (CBCT) images and provide equations for age estimation based on pulp–tooth volume ratio. In this cross-sectional study, CBCT images of 312 anterior teeth of the maxilla and mandible were examineαd. The chronological age and the sex of the patients were recorded. Tooth volume and pulp volume of the anterior teeth were measured using Mimics software, and then tooth–pulp volume ratio was calculated. Statistical analysis of data was performed using chi-square test, independent T-test, Pearson’s correlation, and linear regression (α = 0.05). Finally, equations were made based on the results of the regression analysis for age estimation in general and for males and females. The age of the subjects ranged between 16 and 69 years (mean 40.6 ± 12.74). The pulp–tooth volume ratio of the maxillary teeth was generally higher than the mandibular teeth. A significant inverse relationship between age and pulp–tooth volume ratio was observed for all anterior teeth. (p < 0.05). The strongest correlation between age and pulp–tooth volume ratio was reported for mandibular central incisor (r = −0.58, p < 0.001) and the weakest was for mandibular lateral incisor (r = −0.36, p = 0.012). Age estimation was most accurate among females using the maxillary central incisors (p < 0.001) and among males using the mandibular central incisors and maxillary canines (p = 0.003). Pulp–tooth volume ratio of mandibular central incisors, maxillary lateral incisors, and maxillary canines in males and maxillary and mandibular central incisors, maxillary lateral incisors, and maxillary and mandibular canines in females can be used for age estimation.



2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rigo Junaidi ◽  
Adnil Edwin Nurdin ◽  
Rosfita Rasyid

AbstrakAnxietas atau kecemasan disebabkan oleh faktor psikis dan fisik pada seseorang. Anxietas disebabkan faktor psikis yang timbul karena respons secara emosional atau psikis terhadap ancaman dari luar yang dianggap membahayakan dirinya, sedangkan faktor fisik bisa menjadi penyebab terjadinya kecemasan oleh karena penyakit tubuh dan obat-obatan yang digunakan. Survei komunitas menunjukkan sekitar 2-5% orang dewasa menderita gangguan anxietas menyeluruh, dengan prevelensi seumur hidup lebih dari 25%. Gangguan anxietas menyeluruh biasanya dimulai pada awal masa dewasa usia 15 dan 25 tahun, tetapi angka terus meningkat setelah usia 35 tahun. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengidentifikasi prevalensi. Hasil penelitian ini diharapkan dapat bermanfaat untuk menggambarkan jumlah kasus gangguan anxietas pada warga Kelurahan Padang Besi Kecamatan Lubuk Kilangan akibat banjir bandang 24 Juli 2012 di RT 2 RW 1 dan RT 6 RW 1 dengan menggunakan studi cross sectional. Penelitian ini menggunakan data primer melalui kusioner HAR-s yang dibagikan kepada warga sejak dari Maret sampai April 2013. Ditemukan sebagian warga mengalami anxietas, terutama di RT 2 RW 1 dengan golongan usia 21-40, berjenis kelamin wanita, pekerjaan ibu rumah tangga, sudah menikah dan kelompok dengan pendidikan tingkat SD.Kata kunci: anxietas, gambaran, banjir AbstractAnxiety caused by psychological and physical factors of the person. Anxiety due to psychological factors arising from emotional or psychological response to external threats are considered dangerous to themselves and physical factors could be the cause of anxiety such as illness and the drug using. The community survey shows about 2-5% of adults suffer from anxiety disorders, with a lifetime prevalence more than 25%. The anxiety disorder usually begins in early adulthood, 15 and 25 years old, but the incidence increase after the age of 35 years old.The objective of this study was to identify the prevalence. The results of this study are expected to be useful to describe the number of anxiety disorders incidence in Kelurahan Padang Besi Kecamatan Lubuk Kilangan by flash floods on July 24th, 2012 in RT 2 RW 1 and RT 6 RW 1 by using the cross sectional study. This study used primary data by using HAR-s questionnaire were distributed to residents in March-April 2013. It was found that some people experience anxiety, particularly in the RT 2 RW 1 with the 21-40 age group, female, housewife, married and elementary school of educational level.Keywords: anxiety, overview, flood



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