The Effect of An Indirect Voice Therapy Approach on the Voice of Children With Vocal Fold Nodules: A Prospective Cohort Study

Abstract

To investigate the effect of a combination indirect voice therapy approach on the management of vocal nodules in the pediatric population. A prospective cohort study with thirty children (24 males and 6 females; mean age 8.8 ± 2.2) with a diagnosis of vocal fold nodule (VFN) was conducted. All participants were included in an 8-week voice therapy program consisting of vocal hygiene education and parental rule-setting. Videolaryngoscopic examination, auditory-perceptual evaluation, and acoustic voice analysis were performed immediately before and after the intervention. The comparison of videolaryngoscopic findings before and after the therapy revealed that the size of the nodules decreased significantly (P < 0.001). Findings from the laryngeal examination showed that the vast majority of children 73.3% (n = 22) had no VFN anymore after the intervention. The auditory-perceptual evaluation showed that overall severity of dysphonia decreased significantly [from 50 (40-70) to 38 (30-45), P < 0.001]. Jitter local (P = 0.031) and Jitter local abs (P = 0.043) parameters statistically differed after the therapy. There were not any statistically significant differences for mean F0, shimmer local (%), shimmer local (dB), and mean HNR. The voice therapy method in this study has a clear benefit on the voice of children with VFN and can be used in clinical practice. Specifically, clinicians should consider the parents as a core component of voice therapies and pay attention to vocal hygiene education for optimal management of VFN related childhood dysphonia.