Outcomes of Voice Therapy in Behavioral Voice Disorders: A Scoping Review-Part A

Area of Science:

• Speech-language pathology
• Voice science
• Clinical research methodology

Background:

• Behavioral voice disorders are common and impact quality of life.
• Voice therapy is a primary intervention, but outcome assessment varies.
• Standardized outcome measures are crucial for evaluating therapy effectiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically map outcome assessment instruments and procedures used in voice therapy for adults with behavioral voice disorders.
• To identify the range and frequency of outcome measures reported in the literature.
• To inform best practices in voice therapy outcome assessment.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive scoping review was conducted, adhering to a registered protocol (OSF.IO/YDGA8).
• Searches included bibliographic databases and gray literature, supplemented by citation tracking.
• Data on publication characteristics, sample features, and assessment outcomes were extracted and descriptively analyzed.

Main Results:

• 438 studies were included, with a recent surge in publications, primarily in specialized voice journals.
• Outcome assessment was multidimensional, frequently employing laryngeal imaging, self-assessment, acoustic analysis, auditory-perceptual judgment, and interviews.
• Structural laryngeal evaluation and vocal handicap measures were the most common subcategories identified.

Conclusions:

• Voice therapy outcome assessment for behavioral voice disorders relies heavily on traditional multidimensional models.
• Laryngeal imaging and patient-reported measures are central to current clinical and research practices.
• Opportunities exist to incorporate more physiologically sensitive and therapy-responsive outcome measures.