Phono-articulatory variations of women in reproductive age and postmenopausal

Human verbal expression requires coordinated interaction among cortical, neuromuscular, and peripheral events. It is affected by hormonal factors and shows different characteristics in reproductive age and postmenopausal women. The present study compared phono-articulatory characteristics between women in reproductive age postmenopausal. Acoustic variations in fundamental frequency, voice sustenance, formants, vocal intensity, and verbal diadochokinesis were measured. Forty-five women in reproductive age with regular menstrual cycles and taking no hormonal contraceptives and 45 postmenopausal women receiving no hormonal replacement therapy for at least 3 years were interviewed, and their verbal productions were tape-recorded. Acoustic analyses were performed using the Kay Elemetrics Motor Speech Profile (Lincoln Park, NJ). Student t test was employed to compare data between the two groups when they presented normal distribution and Mann-Whitney test when they were asymmetrical. Results showed a greater variability in vocal sustenance, less variation in formants, and verbal diadochokinesis in postmenopausal women. There were no significant variations in fundamental frequency and vocal intensity. These results emphasize the need of a multidisciplinary integrated research, when assessing phono-articulatory processes after the menopause. A better understanding in this field will make it possible to elaborate strategies to offer a better life quality for postmenopausal women.