Correlation Between Obesity and Self-Perceived Hoarseness in Patients with Voice Complaints

This study aims to investigate the impact of obesity on self-perceived hoarseness in patients presenting with voice complaints.

Retrospective chart review.

The medical records of all patients who presented with a chief complaint of hoarseness between February 2025 and January 2026 were reviewed. Patients were stratified into two subgroups based on the World Health Organization classification of body mass index (BMI), BMI < 30 kg/m² and BMI ≥ 30 kg/m². Anthropometric measures included neck and waist circumference. The two outcomes used to measure self-reported voice complaints were the Voice Handicap Index-10 and the Visual analogue scale.

A total 235 patients, 122 male and 113 female patients were included in the study. The mean age of the whole study group was 52.40 ± 16.72 years. The mean BMI of the whole study group was 26.96 ± 4.87 kg/m², the mean neck circumference was 38.16 ± 4.52 cm, and the mean waist circumference was 89.71 ± 15.34 cm. A linear regression analysis adjusting for age, gender, smoking status, reflux disease, allergy, and voice diagnosis showed a significant positive correlation between VHI-10 scores and BMI (adjusted coefficient=0.330, P<0.001), waist circumference (adjusted coefficient=0.298, P<0.001), and neck circumference (adjusted coefficient=0.276, P<0.001). Similarly, there was a significant correlation between VAS scores and BMI (adjusted coefficient=0.342, P<0.001), waist circumference (adjusted coefficient=0.298, P<0.001), and neck circumference (adjusted coefficient=0.319, P<0.001).

There was a positive correlation between obesity and self-perceived hoarseness. Dysphonic patients with a BMI above 30 kg/m² perceived their hoarseness as worse than those with a BMI below 30 kg/m².