The Voice Handicap Index: Correlation Between Subjective Patient Response and Quantitative Assessment of Voice

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between acoustic analysis and biopsychosocial implications of voice problems, evaluated by the Voice Handicap Index (VHI). Materials and Methods: The study comprised 120 female teachers with voice disorders, evaluated by videolaryngostroboscopy. 60.8% of this group were diagnosed as having functional dysphonia and 39.2% had dysphonia with benign vocal fold masses (nodules and polyps). The controls consisted of 30 euphonic women. The correlations between VHI and acoustic analysis were assessed in both groups using the Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analysis. Results: In teachers, the total VHI score was over 5 times as high as in controls (p < 0.001). Moreover, in teachers, significant positive correlations were found between the total VHI score and the frequency perturbation parameters and amplitude perturbation parameters when both statistical methods were used. These acoustic parameters also significantly correlated with the score on the functional and emotional subscales, but rarely with the physical subscale of the VHI. Conclusions: The study revealed a significant relationship between the objective voice measurements and the VHI. The results confirmed that VHI can be a valuable tool for assessing biopsychosocial implications of occupational dysphonia and should be incorporated in multidimensional voice evaluation.

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Correlation between Acoustic Parameters and Voice Handicap Index in Dysphonic Teachers

Niebudek-Bogusz

Woźnicka

Zamysłowska-Szmytke

et al. 2010

“…0.001) with the score of the VHI [14] . However, in comparable study groups, and using similar measures, only a weak or even no relation was found by Behrmann et al, Hsiung et al, Wheeler et al and Woisard et al [26][27][28][29] . Although the study designs differ in detail, they reinforce the assumption of this study that voice dysbalance on the one hand and the patients' self-perception of their burden on the other hand are independent parameters with a tendency towards a more serious handicap in severe dysphonia.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

Objective Voice Parameters and Self-Perceived Handicap in Dysphonia

Hummel¹,

Scharf²,

Schuetzenberger³

et al. 2010

Objective: This study focuses on the relation between objective voice quality and the self-perception of a voice handicap. Patients and Methods: The study group consisted of 86 German-speaking patients (51 women, 35 men) suffering from benign dysphonia. The test persons completed the German version of the Voice-Related Quality of Life (V-RQOL) Questionnaire without prior information about their diagnosis and underwent voice analysis with the Dysphonia Severity Index (DSI) being the parameter of this study. Results: No correlation between V-RQOL and DSI could be found (p > 0.05). On the V-RQOL, women scored worse than men, but not at a significant level. Patients with dysphonia of organic origin scored significantly worse than patients with functional dysphonia (p = 0.026). On the DSI, men’s values were significantly lower than women’s (p = 0.001). Organic dysphonia caused significantly lower DSI values than functional dysphonia (p = 0.011). Conclusion: Objective voice quality and the individual perception of voice quality by the patient are independent parameters. Both need to be assessed in clinical practice.

“…For the VHI (in the original English version) Hsiung et al [7] found in 56 patients that the four VHI subscales (functional, physical, emotional and total score) weakly correlated with acoustic parameters (jitter, shimmer, harmonic-to-noise ratio and maximal phonation time) of a sustained vowel /e:/. Wheeler et al [8] showed in 50 patients that none of the acoustic measurements (fundamental frequency, jitter, shimmer, signal-to-noise ratio) significantly correlated with the VHI total score (original English version) and Woisard et al [9] also found no significant correlation between total score and subscales in 58 patients in a validated French translation of the VHI and acoustic parameters (jitter, shimmer, harmonic-to-noise ratio).…”

mentioning

confidence: 98%

Comparison of Subjective Assessment of Voice Disorders and Objective Voice Measurement

Hanschmann

Lohmann²,

Berger³

2010

Background: Apart from perceptual and acoustic parameters of a voice disorder, the patient’s individual concerns are important because dysphonia can lead to relevant mental and physical stress. The purpose of our study was to analyze the relationship between patients’ self-assessed concerns over different voice disorders and objective acoustic parameters of their voice. Methods: The Voice Handicap Index 12 (VHI-12) and the Göttingen Hoarseness Diagram (GHD) were evaluated in 226 patients with voice disorders. Individual VHI-12 items were correlated with the parameters of acoustic sound analysis. Result: The frequencies of items classified as negative voice experiences ranked one to three. Patients with unilateral vocal fold paralysis were most affected by their voice disorder. Partially significant Pearson’s correlations were found between the VHI-12 items and the acoustic parameters from the GHD. Discussion: The results of our studies show that voice disorders are very impairing to the affected patients and that vocalizing was rated as particularly strenuous. However, self-assessment and sound analysis provide different information about voice function. Both findings have an important role in comprehensive voice diagnostics.