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Vocal Health Knowledge and Impact on Quality of Life of College Music Students
Mara E Culp1, Paul D Allen2, Ashley P O'Connell Ferster3
1Eastman School of Music, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York.
Objectives/Hypothesis:
To evaluate vocal health knowledge (VHK) among university music students.
Study Design:
Prospective.
Methods:
Undergraduate and graduate students at a school of music in the Northeastern United States completed an online questionnaire that included questions about VHK, the Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10), and demographic information. Here we report on baseline VHK and vocal function.
Results:
Among respondents (N = 36), out of a potential 16 points, the mean VHK score was 11.86 (standard deviation (SD) = 2.95, range = 3-15). The mean VHI-10 score was 7.81 (SD = 7.84, range = 0-34). VHI-10 was marginally worse amongst graduate students (9.24) than undergraduate students (6.39), though this difference was not significant (P > 0.05).
Conclusion:
Initial findings of this ongoing study indicate that music students have baseline knowledge of vocal health, as well as potential vocal health issues. Music students with high voice demands can show evidence of voice impairment and could benefit from education to improve and implement practices to promote vocal health.
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