Abstract
Purpose
To identify the factors affecting teachers’ vocal acoustic parameters, with the aim of detecting individuals at risk of phonotrauma.
Method
The voicing time, voice sound pressure level [SPL] and fundamental frequency [fo] of 87 teachers were measured during one workweek using a voice dosimeter. We retrospectively investigated the impact of 10 factors (gender, age, teaching experience, teaching level, tobacco, gastro-esophageal problems, nonoccupational voice activity, voice education, past voice problems, and biopsychosocial impact of voice problems measured using the Voice Handicap Index [VHI]) on each voice parameter.
Results
None of the above factors affected voicing time or SPL. fo depended significantly on gender, teaching level, nonoccupational voice activity and VHI score. Specifically, fo was higher in women (Δ = 69 Hz), in individuals without nonoccupational voice activities (Δ = 11 Hz), and in individuals with a lower VHI score (increase of 0.7 Hz for each additional point). For females, post hoc comparisons revealed a substantial impact of teaching level on fo: university instructors had deeper voices than kindergarten (Δ = 66 Hz), elementary (Δ = 52 Hz), or secondary teachers (Δ = 41 Hz).
Conclusions
Since higher fo increases the mechanical stress related to vocal fold vibration, the screening and prevention of phonotrauma should focus primarily on women, particularly those who teach at lower levels, and teachers with more self-rated voice problems. The lower fo of teachers who engage in nonprofessional voice activities may suggest acute inflammation or muscle fatigue due to voice overload.
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Data are available upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
We express our gratitude to the teachers and school administrators who participated in this research. We would also like to thank the speech therapy students who helped with the data collection: Anaëlle Alcoulombre, Sarah Chesser, Marine De Brossard, Laetitia De Chambourcy, Pauline Georges, Lucie Hubinon, Armelle Laureys, Mathilde Paboeuf, Raphaëlle Rousseaux, and Marie Simon.
Funding
Angélique Remacle was funded by the Fund for Scientific Research–F.R.S.-FNRS (Brussels, Belgium).
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AR: study conceptualization and design, methodology, data acquisition and analysis, writing—original draft preparation and review. NL: statistical analysis.
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Overview of the participants’ individual characteristics and vocal acoustic parameters. Each teacher wore the Ambulatory Phonation Monitor for five full days of normal activities in a typical workweek.
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Remacle, A., Lefèvre, N. Which teachers are most at risk for voice disorders? Individual factors predicting vocal acoustic parameters monitored in situ during a workweek. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 94, 1271–1285 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-021-01681-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-021-01681-3