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Observational Study
. 2021 Dec;278(12):4909-4916.
doi: 10.1007/s00405-021-07021-y. Epub 2021 Aug 10.

Effects of a conservative in-patient voice treatment on the voice-related self-concept

Bernhard Lehnert  1 , Manfred Nusseck  2 , Fei Lu  3   4 , Annerose Keilmann  3
Affiliations
Observational Study

Effects of a conservative in-patient voice treatment on the voice-related self-concept

Bernhard Lehnert et al. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 Dec.

Abstract

Purpose: Observational study to determine if the voice-related self-concept as measured via the Fragebogen zur Erfassung des Stimmlichen Selbstkonzepts FESS (questionnaire for the assessment of the voice self-concept) can be improved through in-patient voice therapy.

Methods: 234 female and 80 male patients that underwent an intensive 3- to 4-week in-patient voice treatment due to varying types of dysphonia. After imputation of missing items but not missing questionnaires, 255 patients were eligible for FESS evaluation, 313 for VHI-12 evaluation. The German questionnaire for the assessment of the voice self-concept (FESS) and the German 12-item short-form of the Voice Handicap Index (VHI-12) were administered at the beginning and at the end of the hospital stay. Before-after comparisons are made visually and via t test.

Results: The Voice Handicap was significantly reduced, demonstrating the effectiveness of the administered therapy. Of the three scales of the FESS, the relationship with one's own voice and the awareness of the use of one's own voice was increased and thus improved. The connection between voice and emotional changes decreased significantly but only slightly.

Conclusion: Conservative voice rehabilitation can not only reduce the voice handicap, but also improve the voice self-concept and the results can be measured.

Keywords: Dysphonia; FESS; Rehabilitation goals; Speech; Voice; Voice-Related Self-Concept.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Relationship with one's own voice on admission and dismissal from hospital stay. Points on the diagonal line have identical admission and dismissal values. Values above that line reflect an increase during the hospital stay. Higher relationships with one’s own voice are considered better
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Awareness of the use of one's own voice on admission and dismissal from hospital stay. Points on the gray diagonal line have identical admission and dismissal values. Values above that line reflect an increase during the hospital stay. Higher awareness of the use of one’s own voice is considered better
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
The connection between voice and emotional change was higher at admission then at dismissal
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Voice handicap decreased during the stay at the Stimmheilzentrum Bad Rappenau. Lower VHI-12 values are better
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Post hoc analysis of the change in FESS scales 1 through 3 (plot a to c) and VHI-12 (plot d) by diagnosis groups (“F” mostly functional, “O” mostly organic, “P” mostly psychogenic). In plot C, we see a trend for patients with mostly psychogenic dysphonia to leave the hospital with higher scores whilst everybody else tends to leave with lower scores. Omnibus p values are from one-way ANOVA, pairwise p values from Welch-corrected t tests, no corrections for multiple testing
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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