The impact and application exercises on vocal fatigue.

Area of Science:

• Speech and Hearing Sciences
• Voice Disorders
• Rehabilitative Medicine

Background:

• Occupational vocal loading can lead to vocal fatigue in vocally healthy adults.
• Straw phonation exercises are proposed interventions for vocal fatigue.
• Optimal timing and duration of straw phonation require investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the therapeutic efficacy of different straw phonation exercise regimens for vocal fatigue.
• To investigate the application of straw phonation after simulated occupational vocal loading.
• To evaluate the impact of intervention timing and duration on voice quality and comfort.

Main Methods:

• 114 vocally healthy adults underwent a 1-hour vocal loading task (VLT).
• Interventions included 10-minute vocal rest (control), 10-minute straw phonation (Group A), or 5-minute vocal rest + 5-minute straw phonation (Group B).
• Acoustic (MPT, F0, jitter, shimmer, HNR, CPP-s) and perceptual (VTD, PPE) voice measures were assessed pre-VLT, post-VLT, and post-intervention.

Main Results:

• Experimental Group B (5-min rest + 5-min phonation) showed superior improvements in jitter, shimmer, HNR, and CPP-s compared to the control group.
• Both experimental groups reported reduced vocal tract discomfort (VTD) and perceived phonatory effort (PPE) compared to the control group.
• The 5-minute vocal rest followed by 5-minute straw phonation yielded greater immediate voice quality improvements and reduced discomfort than 10-minute straw phonation.

Conclusions:

• Straw phonation exercises provide short-term benefits for voice quality and comfort compared to vocal rest alone.
• A regimen of 5-minute vocal rest followed by 5-minute straw phonation is more effective than 10-minute straw phonation for immediate post-vocal loading recovery.
• The timing and duration of straw phonation are crucial for optimizing therapeutic outcomes in managing vocal fatigue.