Vocal Change Patterns During a Teaching Day: Inter- and Intra-Subject Variability

• Published in: Journal of voice Vol. 32; no. 1; pp. 57 - 63
• Main Authors: Remacle, Angélique, Garnier, Maëva, Gerber, Silvain, David, Claire, Petillon, Caroline
• Format: Journal Article Web Resource
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.01.2018; Elsevier; Mosby
• Subjects: Acoustic analysis; Acoustics; Human health and pathology; Human health sciences; Life Sciences; Mechanics; Occupational voice; Oto-rhino-laryngologie; Otolaryngology; Physics; Public health, health care sciences & services; Santé publique et épidémiologie; Santé publique, services médicaux & soins de santé; Sciences de la santé humaine; Screening; Teachers; Vocal fatigue; Vocal hyperfunction; Vocal loading; Vocal hyperfunction; Teachers; Vocal loading; Vocal fatigue; Acoustic analysis
• ISSN: 0892-1997; 1873-4588; 1873-4588
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2017.03.008

Summary Objectives The study aimed to describe the average response of 22 female teachers to vocal fatigue during a workday, to examine their inter- and intra-subject variability, and to establish a typology of different responses to vocal fatigue. Methods Fundamental frequency (F0), harmonics-to-noise ratio (HNR), jitter, and shimmer were measured for each participant on sustained vowels at the beginning and at the end of the workday, on three different times of the school year. Results Group average variations during the workday showed a significant increase in F0 and HNR, as well as a significant decrease in jitter and shimmer. However, these variations also showed an important inter- and intra-subject variability. Based on the variation of acoustic parameters during the workday, three distinct responses to vocal fatigue were characterized. The first type is characterized by a greater F0 increase during the day, interpreted as an adequate and common adaptation to vocal fatigue. The second type is characterized by a greater increase in HNR during the day, and a greater decrease in jitter and shimmer, interpreted as a hyperfunctional adaptation to vocal fatigue. The third type is characterized by a greater decrease in F0 and HNR, and a greater increase in jitter and shimmer, suggesting vocal fold closure defaults, inflammation or even phonotrauma following the workday. Conclusions The observed variety of responses to vocal fatigue emphasizes the necessity to study this phenomenon idiosyncratically and to target different types of behaviors in order to develop tailored prevention and treatment methods.