Does regular practice of physical activity reduce the risk of dysphonia?
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between regular physical activity and the prevalence of dysphonia.


METHODS
A cross-sectional study was conducted with 3142 teachers from 129 municipal public schools in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The dependent variable, dysphonia, was classified (absent or present) according to reported symptoms (fatigue when speaking and loss of voice quality), their frequency (occasionally and daily), and duration (past 15 days). The independent variable was regular physical activity. The degree of association was estimated based on the prevalence ratio and a 95% confidence interval obtained by the Poisson regression adapted for cross-sectional studies.


RESULTS
In the study sample, the prevalence of dysphonia in teachers was 15.63%. Nearly half (47.52%) of the teachers reported no regular practice of physical exercises. The remaining teachers (52.48%) walked and did physical exercises, sports, and other activities; 31.25% undertook these activities once or twice a week, and 21.23% exercised three or more times a week. Teachers who did not practice physical activity were more likely to present dysphonia compared to those that exercised three or more times a week.


CONCLUSIONS
Regular physical activity was associated positively with the prevalence of dysphonia.
Minas Gerais Federal University (Medical School). adavila@medicina.ufmg.br
Ada Avila
AA
Assunção
Adriane Mesquita
AM
de Medeiros
Sandhi Maria
SM
Barreto
Ana Cristina Cortes
AC
Gama
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D055154:Dysphonia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D055815:Young Adult