Association Between Menopause and Voice
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate and clarify the effects of menopause on voice by comparing postmenopausal female participants who did not receive hormone therapy (HT) to premenopausal female participants. Methods: The study included 50 postmenopausal women who had not undergone HT, as well as 50 premenopausal women. The acoustic voice analysis considered fundamental frequency ( F 0), jitter, shimmer, harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR), and noise-to-harmonic ratio (NHR). Jitter is variations of F 0, and shimmer is of peak amplitude. Experts completed the Grade, Roughness, Breathiness, Asthenia, Strain scale for perceptual assessment, while participants self-evaluated their voice using the Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10). Results: Postmenopausal women had lower acoustic parameters ( F 0 [ P = .01], G [ P = .037], R [ P = .011], and S [ P = .031]) scores. Age had a link with G ( r = 0.303, P = .002), R ( r = 0.417, P < .001), A ( r = 0.297, P = .003), and S ( r = 0.370, P = .001) and the F 0 ( r = −0.455, P = .001). There was no significant difference in the VHI-10 ( P = .526), jitter ( P = .216), shimmer ( P = .920), HNR ( P = .261), and NHR ( P = .301) values. Conclusion: Postmenopausal women’s voice have lower frequency, and perceptually-lower grade, roughness, and strain than premenopausal women; however, these changes do not affect their quality of life.
Source: Ear Nose & Throat Journal
Authors: Sidika Deniz Yalım, Selcuk Bayram, Nuray Bayar Muluk, Cemal Cingi
Language: English
Topic: Voice and Speech Disorders
Subfield: Physiology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,650
OpenAlex ID: W4416271955