Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of external laryngeal vibration on voice function. The current study was based on a recent pilot study using silicone vocal folds that demonstrated a decrease in phonation threshold pressure (PTP; cmH2O) when an external oscillation was applied to the vocal folds. Using a within-subjects experimental design, a custom external oscillatory device was fitted to the posterior portion of 12 excised pig larynges using a traditional benchtop phonation setup. For each larynx, phonation was elicited during 30 repeated trials, including 15 with and 15 without external oscillation. During the phonation trials, aerodynamic measures were collected. The outcome measure for this study was PTP, which has been established in the literature as being correlated with physiologic and self-perceived vocal effort. Furthermore, PTP is used routinely as an aerodynamic indicator of voice function, vocal efficiency, and the nature and severity of voice disorders. Although the aim was to quantify either positive (i.e., PTP decrease) or negative (i.e., PTP increase) effects of external oscillation on PTP, it was hypothesized that external oscillation would result in a reduction in average PTP values. The results of the study indicate that application of an external oscillatory device results in significantly lower PTP. These findings have important clinical implications for PTP signal acquisition and the potential use of external oscillation as a therapeutic tool to improve voice function.

Degree

College and Department

David O. McKay School of Education; Communication Disorders

Rights

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