Validation and Development of Vocal Fatigue Handicap Questionnaire for Koreans

Area of Science:

• Speech and Hearing Sciences
• Otolaryngology
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Vocal fatigue significantly impacts individuals with dysphonia.
• Accurate assessment tools are crucial for understanding and managing vocal fatigue.
• The Vocal Fatigue Handicap Questionnaire of the Korean version (VFHQ-K) was developed to address this need.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate the Korean version of the Vocal Fatigue Handicap Questionnaire (VFHQ-K).
• To assess the reliability and clinical utility of the VFHQ-K in a Korean population.

Main Methods:

• A case-control study involving 95 patients with voice problems and 25 controls.
• Participants completed the VFHQ-K, Voice Handicap Index (VHI-K), and Vocal Fatigue Index (VFI-K).
• Test-retest reliability was assessed, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis determined the cut-off value.

Main Results:

• VFHQ-K scores were significantly higher in the case group compared to the control group.
• VFHQ-K scores showed significant correlations with VHI-K and VFI-K.
• The VFHQ-K demonstrated excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha: 0.932-0.979) and test-retest reliability. The cut-off score of 16.0 achieved 92.6% sensitivity and 92.0% specificity.

Conclusions:

• The VFHQ-K is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing vocal fatigue symptoms in patients with dysphonia.
• The questionnaire is expected to be clinically useful for identifying vocal fatigue.
• Further research with larger, diverse populations is recommended to confirm clinical utility.