[Voice problems in some groups of professional users of voice: implications for prevention]

The primary prevention of communication problems is a growing part of the professional responsibility of the speech-language therapist. Functional voice hyperfunction, which often occurs in professional users of voice, can be prevented. In this article three separate studies on voice problems of people in three different professions are reported. The subjects included 183 educators, 50 ministers and 20 singers. The data were obtained using questionnaires. The results indicate that voice problems and symptoms of voice problems occur in all three groups, that these speakers have little knowledge of the subject, that they expose themselves to high risk factors, and that they do not conserve their voices. Guidelines for instruction in prevention are provided.