title: Multidimensional Voice Data on Participants With Perceptually Normal Voices From Ages 60 to 80: A Preliminary Acoustic Reference for the Elderly Population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to provide a preliminary acoustic reference for an elderly population (aged 60-80) with perceptually normal voices to determine the degree of noise in the vocal signal of this population; a younger population (aged 20-30) with perceptually normal voices participated for comparison. The participants were tested on the MultidimensionalVoice Program (model 5105, KayPENTAX, Lincoln Park, NJ), and the following acoustic parameters were evaluated: relative average perturbation (cycle-to-cycle frequency perturbations), shimmer (cycle-to-cycle amplitude perturbations), and noise-to-harmonic ratio (degree of noise in the vocal signal).
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty participants between the ages of 60 and 80 (mean age, 69.5) and 50 participants between the ages of 20 and 30 (mean age, 23.23) were tested by sustaining the vowel /a/ on the Multidimensional Voice Program. Voice and/or speech samples were also recorded for each participant to reveal perceptually normal voices.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The older group had significantly higher levels of relative average perturbation, shimmer, and noise-to-harmonic ratio than the younger group, and males had significantly higher levels of shimmer than females.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The acoustic values obtained for the older group with perceptually normal voices resembled data in the literature, particularly when the ages of the participants in the studies were similar. The present findings may possibly be used as a preliminary reference against which to compare clinical acoustic data to older clients with dysphonic voices.
authors: Department of Speech Communication Arts and Sciences, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, New York. Electronic address: natalies@brooklyn.cuny.edu.
authors: Natalie
authors: N
authors: Schaeffer
authors: Department of Speech Communication Arts and Sciences, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, New York.
authors: Melissa
authors: M
authors: Knudsen
authors: Department of Speech Communication Arts and Sciences, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, New York.
authors: Ashley
authors: A
authors: Small
mesh_terms: D000162:Acoustics; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D013061:Speech Acoustics; D013067:Speech Perception; D013068:Speech Production Measurement; D014833:Voice Quality; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Elderly population; Noise-to-harmonic ratio (NHR); Perceptually normal voices; Relative average perturbations (RAP)—related to jitter; Younger population