Glottal To Noise Excitation Research Articles

The immediate effect of vocal technique associated with virtual reality game in people with Parkinsons disease

Abstract Introduction People with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) have difficult motor hearing calibration, which affects the monitoring of vocal production. Therefore, employing visual stimulus associated with vocal therapy may benefit the voice of this population. For this purpose, some techniques favour the competence of the glottis, such as pushing, which consists of movements of the arms with a simultaneous effort to phonation and, associated with virtual reality games, provide playful therapeutic intervention through the simulation of experiences that can foster glottal adjustments and generate changes in the voice. Objectives To determine the immediate effect of the technique of pushing with plosive sounds associated with the use of a virtual reality game in the voice of people with Parkinson's disease. Methodology The participants were 17 men and 14 women, mean age of 62.61 (± 11.24) years, meantime of diagnosis 6.93 years, distributed in stages I (32.5%), II (22.59%), III (45.16%) of Hoehn and Yahr. scale. The vocal evaluation pre and post pushing technique with plosive sounds associated with virtual reality game consisted of analysing vocal, acoustic parameters from the record of the issuance of the vowel /ε/. The parameters extracted were Jitter, Shimmer, corresponding to signs of disturbance of the sound source and Glottal-to Noise Excitation (GNE), corresponding to the energy of the glottis on the noise. The satisfaction questionnaire on the implementation of this technique associated with virtual reality was used. Results The values of disturbance of the sound wave decreased, and the glottal energy on the noise increased, respectively, Jitter (p = 0.0075); Shimmer (p = 0.0048); GNE (p = 0.0008). Regarding the satisfaction questionnaire, 74.20% of them felt very satisfied and 25.80%, satisfied. Conclusion The vocal technique associated with virtual reality game improved the acoustic parameters of the participants' voice and the majority felt great satisfaction with the intervention.

Accuracy of traditional and formant acoustic measurements in the evaluation of vocal quality.

Investigate the accuracy of isolated and combined acoustic measurements in the discrimination of voice deviation intensity (GD) and predominant voice quality (PVQ) in patients with dysphonia. A total of 302 female patients with voice complaints participated in the study. The sustained /ɛ/ vowel was used to extract the following acoustic measures: mean and standard deviation (SD) of fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer, glottal to noise excitation (GNE) ratio and the mean of the first three formants (F1, F2, and F3). Auditory-perceptual evaluation of GD and PVQ was conducted by three speech-language pathologists who were voice specialists. In isolation, only GNE provided satisfactory performance when discriminating between GD and PVQ. Improvement in the classification of GD and PVQ was observed when the acoustic measures were combined. Mean F0, F2, and GNE (healthy × mild-to-moderate deviation), the SDs of F0, F1, and F3 (mild-to-moderate × moderate deviation), and mean jitter and GNE (moderate × intense deviation) were the best combinations for discriminating GD. The best combinations for discriminating PVQ were mean F0, shimmer, and GNE (healthy × rough), F3 and GNE (healthy × breathy), mean F 0, F3, and GNE (rough × tense), and mean F0 , F1, and GNE (breathy × tense). In isolation, GNE proved to be the only acoustic parameter capable of discriminating between GG and PVQ. There was a gain in classification performance for discrimination of both GD and PVQ when traditional and formant acoustic measurements were combined.

Tempo ideal de vibração sonorizada de língua em crianças disfônicas

Objetivo: verificar o tempo ideal do exercício de vibração sonorizada de língua (EVSL) na voz de crianças disfônicas. Método: participaram vinte e sete crianças, entre 04 e 11 anos, com diagnóstico de nódulo ou cisto de pregas vocais. Dessas crianças, onze fizeram parte do grupo experimental (GE) e 16 do grupo controle (GC). A vogal sustentada /ε/ e a contagem de 1 a 10 foram registradas antes (m0) e após o primeiro (m1), terceiro (m3), quinto (m5) e o sétimo (m7) minuto de execução do EVSL. As gravações foram apresentadas a três fonoaudiólogas, que julgaram se houve modificação da qualidade vocal. Os parâmetros acústicos avaliados na vogal sustentada foram frequência fundamental, jitter, shimmer, glotal to noise excitation (GNE) e ruído. Resultados: na avaliação perceptivo-auditiva, não houve modificações significativas entre os momentos de execução do EVSL. Na análise acústica, observou-se que o parâmetro ruído diminuiu e o parâmetro GNE aumentou após três minutos de realização do exercício no GE, em comparação com o GC. Conclusão: não houve melhora em nenhum dos tempos na avaliação perceptivo-auditiva da voz de crianças disfônicas com o EVSL. A análise acústica indicou melhora da qualidade vocal aos três minutos de execução do exercício.

Voice disorders in residual paracoccidioidomycosis in upper airways and digestive tract

BackgroundParacoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is a systemic mycosis of acute and chronic evolution, caused by species belonging to the genus Paracoccidioides. It is considered the most prevalent systemic endemic mycosis in Latin America, with cases in the tropical and subtropical regions. Residual PCM refers to the fibrotic scar sequelae resulting from the disease treatment which, when associated with collagen accumulation, leads to functional and anatomic alterations in the organs. AimsThe aim of this study was to evaluate the vocal function of patients with residual PCM in upper airways and digestive tract. MethodsWe performed a cross-sectional study in 2010 in a cohort of 21 patients with residual PCM in upper airways and digestive tract. ResultsThe average age was 49.48±9.1 years, and only two (9.5%) patients were female. The study was performed in the 1–113 month-period (median 27) after the end of drug treatment. Five (23.8%) patients had alterations in the larynx as a sequela of the disease. However, all patients had vocal changes in vocal auditory perceptual analysis by GRBASI scale. The computerized acoustic analysis using the software Vox Metria, showed that 11 patients (52.4%) presented alterations in jitter, 15 (71.4%) in shimmer, 8 (38.1%) in F0, 4 (19%) in glottal to noise excitation (GNE), 7 (33.3%) in the presence of noise and 12 (57.1%) in the presence of vibratory irregularity. ConclusionsThe great frequency of alterations in residual PCM suggests that the patients in such phase could benefit from a multidisciplinary treatment, offering them integral monitoring of the disease, including speech rehabilitation after the PCM is healed.

Accuracy of Acoustic Analysis Measurements in the Evaluation of Patients With Different Laryngeal Diagnoses

This study aims to investigate the accuracy of acoustic measures in discriminating between patients with different laryngeal diagnoses. The study design is descriptive, cross-sectional, and retrospective. A total of 279 female patients participated in the research. Acoustic measures of the mean and standard deviation (SD) values of the fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer, and glottal to noise excitation (GNE) were extracted from the emission of the vowel /ε/. Isolated acoustic measures do not demonstrate adequate performance in discriminating patients with and without laryngeal alteration. The combination of GNE, SD of the F0, jitter, and shimmer improved the ability to classify patients with and without laryngeal alteration. In isolation, the SD of the F0, shimmer, and GNE presented acceptable performance in discriminating individuals with different laryngeal diagnoses. The combination of acoustic measurements caused discrete improvement in performance of the classifier to discriminate healthy larynx vs vocal polyp (SD of the F0, shimmer, and GNE), healthy larynx vs unilateral vocal fold paralysis (SD of the F0 and jitter), healthy larynx vs vocal nodules (SD of the F0 and jitter), healthy larynx vs sulcus vocalis (SD of the F0 and shimmer), and healthy larynx vs voice disorder due to gastroesophageal reflux (F0 mean, jitter, and shimmer). Isolated acoustic measures do not demonstrate adequate performance in discriminating patients with and without laryngeal alteration, although they present acceptable performance in classifying different laryngeal diagnoses. Combined acoustic measures present an acceptable capacity to discriminate between the presence and the absence of laryngeal alteration and to differentiate several laryngeal diagnoses.

Immediate effects of the semi-occluded vocal tract exercise with LaxVox® tube in singers.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the immediate effects of the semi-occluded vocal tract exercise (SOVTE) using the LaxVox® tube in singers. Participants were 23 singers, classical singing students, aged 18 to 47 years (mean age = 27.2 years). First, data was collected through the application of a demographic questionnaire and the recording of sustained emission - vowel /ε/, counting 1-10, and a music section from the participants' current repertoire. After that, the participants were instructed and performed the SOVTE using the LaxVox® tube for three minutes. Finally, the same vocal samples were collected immediately after SOVTE performance and the singers responded to a questionnaire on their perception regarding vocal changes after the exercise. The vocal samples were analyzed by referees (speech-language pathologists and singing teachers) and by means of acoustic analysis. Most of the singers reported improved voice post-exercise in both tasks - speech and singing. Regarding the perceptual assessment (sustained vowel, speech, and singing), the referees found no difference between pre- and post-exercise emissions. The acoustic analysis of the sustained vowel showed increased Fundamental Frequency (F0) and reduction of the Glottal to Noise Excitation (GNE) ratio post-exercise. The semi-occluded vocal tract exercise with LaxVox® tube promotes immediate positive effects on the self-assessment and acoustic analysis of voice in professional singers without vocal complains. No immediate significant changes were observed with respect to auditory-perceptual evaluation of speech and singing.

Disfonias orgânicas por neoplasias: análise de diagramas de desvio fonatório

OBJETIVO:comparar dados acústicos obtidos por meio de diagrama de desvio fonatório de vozes de pacientes disfônicos submetidos a laringectomias parciais com vozes de sujeitos de mesma faixa etária, porém sem queixa vocal.MÉTODOS:foram estudadas as vozes de 28 sujeitos sendo 14 sujeitos laringectomizados parciais e 14 sujeitos sem queixa vocal, compondo um grupo controle. Ambos os grupos do sexo masculino com mesma faixa etária e nível de escolaridade.RESULTADOS:as vozes dos laringectomizados parciais 100% distribuíram-se fora do quadrante de normalidade, sendo que 64,3% se localizaram no quadrante superior direito, 100% apresentaram desvios horizontais e 85,7% tiveram desvio vertical de ruído. Do grupo controle 28,5% distribuíram-se dentro do quadrante de normalidade, 71,5% localizaram-se no quadrante inferior direito, 57,2% apresentaram desvio horizontal de irregularidade - em shimmere 7,2% em jitter. Apenas 7,2% apresentou desvio vertical de ruído no grupo controle. Houve significância estatística em relação aos parâmetros de jitter, shimmer e GNE (glottal to noise excitation) e entre a distribuição das vozes nos quadrantes direito superior e inferior do diagrama, na presença de vozes alteradas.CONCLUSÃO:o diagrama permitiu analisar e discriminar vozes alteradas daquelas com disfonia após laringectomia parcial diferenciando-as por meio de seus parâmetros, distribuição, localização e tipo de voz sendo considerado um recurso útil para análise vocal.

Severity of Voice Disorders in Children: Correlations Between Perceptual and Acoustic Data

The aims of this study were to verify whether there is correlation between perceptual and acoustic data and to verify which measures are useful to identify the severity of voice deviation in children. The participants were 71 children aged 3-9 years. The severity of voice deviation, roughness, breathiness, strain, and instability was evaluated by three speech therapists, experts on perceptual voice evaluation. A visual analog scale was used; speech material consisted of a sustained vowel sound /ε/ and the counting of numbers from one to 10. The means and standard deviations of fundamental frequency (F(0)), jitter, shimmer, and glottal-to-noise excitation (GNE) ratio were extracted from the sustained vowel, and the mean and variability of F(0) were extracted from automatic speech (counting). Perceptual and acoustic data were correlated. Most children had mild voice deviation, with strain, instability, and breathiness as predominant voice qualities. F(0) measures correlate with strain to phonate. Shimmer and GNE correlate with general degree of voice deviation and with the roughness, breathiness, and instability parameters. GNE and F(0) mean in connected speech were the only measures that distinguished voices regarding severity of voice deviation. There was a correlation between perceptual and acoustic measures from these children's voices. Children with high-pitched voices had higher voice deviations. GNE is a measure that reliably distinguishes the severity of voice deviation and may be useful in the screening and evaluation of children's voices.

Acoustic Signal Typing for Evaluation of Voice Quality in Tracheoesophageal Speech

Because of the aperiodicity of many tracheoesophageal voices, acoustic analysis of the tracheoesophageal voice is less straightforward than that of the normal voice. This study presents the development and testing of an acoustic signal typing system based on visual inspection of a narrow-band spectrogram that can be used by researchers for classification of voice quality in tracheoesophageal speech. In addition to this classification system, a selection of acoustic measures [median fundamental frequency, standard deviation of fundamental frequency, jitter, percentage of voiced (%Voiced), harmonics-to-noise ratio (HNR), glottal-to-noise excitation (GNE) ratio, and band energy difference (BED)] was computed to provide more insight into the acoustic components of tracheoesophageal voice quality. For clinical relevance, relationships between the acoustic signal types and an overall judgment of the voice were investigated as well. Results showed that the four acoustic signal types form a good basis for performing more acoustic analyses and give a good impression of the overall quality of the voice.