Objective: Presbyphonia may adversely affect social interaction in older adults. This study evaluates loneliness, social disconnectedness, depressive symptoms, and voice-related parameters in older adults with and without presbyphonia.
Methods: This study targets enrollment of 25 adults with presbyphonia and 25 healthy controls. Participants complete questionnaires assessing social connection, mental health, and voice-related quality of life, alongside videostroboscopy and voice recordings. Primary outcomes include: UCLA Loneliness Scale, Social Disconnectedness Scale, and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Secondary outcomes include: Voice-Related Perceptual Impact Scale (VPIS), Aging Voice Index (AVI), and Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10). Acoustic measures from sustained vowels include fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer, and cepstral peak prominence (CPP).
Results: To date, 25 participants have enrolled (21 controls, 4 presbyphonia). Data are presented as mean (standard deviation). Controls demonstrated low depressive symptoms and social isolation: PHQ-9 = 3.0 (3.44), Social Disconnectedness = 28.46 (7.32), and UCLA Loneliness = 31.0 (7.5). Voice-related quality of life scores were within normal limits (VHI-10 = 2.38 (3.77), AVI = 4.52 (6.65), VPIS Overall = 1.29 (0.88)). Acoustic analyses revealed expected patterns: /a/ F0 = 159.1 (32) Hz, jitter = 1.08 (0.73)%, shimmer = 5.29 (2.47)%, CPP = 11.26 (2.55) dB; /i/ F0 = 166.3 (34.8) Hz, jitter = 1.37 (0.91)%, shimmer = 3.81 (1.91)%, CPP = 8.14 (3.10) dB. Preliminary data from 4 participants with presbyphonia demonstrated lower F0 and CPP with higher perturbation: /a/ F0 = 125.7 (19.1) Hz, jitter = 2.08 (1.16)%, shimmer = 7.01 (5.03)%, CPP = 8.43 (3.37) dB; /i/ F0 = 134.6 (3.7) Hz, jitter = 1.84 (1.19)%, shimmer = 3.40 (2.58)%, CPP = 7.35 (2.52) dB. These participants had higher depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 = 4.75 (1.48)), slightly greater social disconnectedness (29.31 (3.14)), and markedly higher voice-related scores (VHI-10 = 18.25 (4.49), AVI = 38.5 (4.27), VPIS Overall = 3.0 (0.71)). Interpretation is limited by small sample size.
Conclusions: Preliminary findings suggest that individuals with presbyphonia may experience greater depressive symptoms and acoustic markers of vocal decline relative to healthy peers. Recruitment and analysis are ongoing to confirm these trends and clarify the social and emotional effects of age-related voice change.