Cut-off point for high dysphonia risk in children based on the Child Dysphonia Risk Screening Protocol: preliminary
Giovana Kaila Santos Batista1, Marcia Simões-Zenari1, Kátia Nemr1
1Departamento de Fisioterapia, Fonoaudiologia e Terapia Ocupacional, Faculdade de Medicina FMUSP, Universidade de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, BR.
Insights
The Child Dysphonia Risk Screening Protocol (DRSP-C) established a cut-off score of 16.50 for identifying high dysphonia risk in children. This tool aids in vocal health promotion for pediatric patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Otolaryngology
- Speech-Language Pathology
- Voice Disorders
Background:
- Dysphonia, or voice disorders, affects children, necessitating reliable screening tools.
- The Child Dysphonia Risk Screening Protocol (DRSP-C) was developed to assess dysphonia risk in pediatric populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish a specific cut-off point for high dysphonia risk using the DRSP-C in children.
- To evaluate the diagnostic capacity of the DRSP-C for screening pediatric dysphonia.
Main Methods:
- Collected voice recordings from 59 children (ages 4-12) using the Consensus Auditory-Perceptual Evaluation of Voice (CAPE-V).
- Compared DRSP-C scores between a patient group (30 children with voice disorders) and a control group (29 children without).
- Utilized Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis to determine the questionnaire's validity and establish cut-off points.
Main Results:
- The DRSP-C scores were significantly higher in the patient group compared to the control group.
- A cut-off score of 16.50 was identified, indicating a higher risk of dysphonia above this threshold.
- The area under the ROC curve was 0.678, suggesting limited diagnostic capacity.
Conclusions:
- A cut-off point of 16.50 for the DRSP-C was established to identify children at high risk for dysphonia.
- The DRSP-C shows promise as a tool for pediatric vocal health promotion when used alongside general screening methods.
Objectives:
The objective of the study was to establish a cut-off point for high dysphonia risk in children using the Child Dysphonia Risk Screening Protocol (DRSP-C).
Methods:
Through a preliminary study, voice recordings of 59 children (4-12 years of age) were collected during an auditory-perceptual analysis using the Consensus Auditory-Perceptual Evaluation of Voice protocol. Thirty of the patients had voice disorders (patient group), and 29 did not (control group). A risk score for dysphonia was then calculated, and data were compared between groups. The relationship between overall degrees of deviation and questionnaire scores was analysed. The questionnaire's validity was verified from the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve, and cut-off points were obtained based on diagnostic criteria for screening procedures.
Results:
The DRSP-C score was found to be higher for the patient group, as was the partial score for vocal behaviour. No correlation was found between overall degrees of dysphonia and questionnaire scores. The area under the ROC curve was measured as 0.678, denoting limited diagnostic capacity. The cut-off point was set at 16.50. Thus, above this value, dysphonia risk is higher.
Conclusion:
A cut-off point for high dysphonia risk was calculated. The DRSP-C proved to be a promising tool for children's clinical vocal and health promotion and should be used in conjunction with General Dysphonia Risk Screening.
