title: Acoustic parameters of speech: Lack of correlation with perceptual and questionnaire-based speech evaluation in patients with oral and oropharyngeal cancer treated with primary surgery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Acoustic evaluation of speech is the least explored method of speech evaluation in patients with oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer. The purpose of this study was to explore acoustic parameters of speech and their correlation with questionnaire evaluation and perceptual evaluation in patients with oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred seventeen subjects (65 consecutive patients with oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer and 52 controls) participated in this study. Formant frequencies (by Linear Predictive Coding), Speech Handicap Index, and London Speech Evaluation scale were used for acoustic evaluation, questionnaire evaluation, and perceptual evaluation, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Men showed significant elevation in second formant (F2) values for patients with oral cavity cancer and those who underwent surgery alone. Female patients with early T classification cancers and those who underwent surgery and chemoradiation showed significant reduction in the mean F2 values. Importantly, however, acoustic evaluation parameters did not correlate with either perceptual evaluation or questionnaire evaluation parameters, although there was moderate correlation between questionnaire evaluation and perceptual evaluation speech parameters.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Acoustic evaluation modalities have no clear role in the management of patients with oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancer.
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.|The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Raghav C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Dwivedi
authors.affiliation: Research, Data and Statistical Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: St Rose
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Edward J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Chisholm
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Peter M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Clarke
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Cyrus J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Kerawala
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.|The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Christopher M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Nutting
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.|The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Peter H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Rhys-Evans
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.|The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Rehan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kazi
authors.affiliation: Head and Neck Unit, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.|The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Kevin J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Harrington
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D009959:Oropharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D013061:Speech Acoustics; D013064:Speech Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D013065:Speech Intelligibility; D013068:Speech Production Measurement / Q000379:methods*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: London Speech Evaluation (LSE) scale; Speech Handicap Index (SHI); acoustic evaluation; head and neck cancer; oral and oropharyngeal cancer; quality of life; speech evaluation