title: Is Menstrual Dysphonia Associated With Greater Disability and Lower Quality of Life?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of the present study had been to examine the relationships between menstrual dysphonia and measures of psychosocial distress, in a sample of female professional voice users.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a prospective study of 52 consecutive professional voice users, aged 18-40 years, affected by transient dysphonia related to the menstrual cycle and recruited in the Division of Phoniatrics and Audiology of the Second University of Naples, from April 2011 to September 2014. The following evaluation protocol was used: videoendoscopy, the GIRBAS scale, the Voice Handicap Index, and the determination of sexual hormonal plasma levels both during the menstrual and the luteal phase of the cycle. Furthermore, we measured, in all patients, the levels of perceived disability and quality of life during and after the dysphonia episodes by means of the Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life and the Sheehan disability scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Laryngoscopic evaluation revealed that only minor morphologic changes were present during the first days of the follicular phase, usually returning to normal morphology after the menstrual period was over. However, we found that dysphonia episodes of varying degree were present in most evaluated subjects; women with a moderate degree of dysphonia also had a lower quality of life and greater overall disability, during menses.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite minimal morphologic signs of laryngeal pathology, menstrual dysphonia might represent a disease which is frequent among female professional voice users, which in turn is associated with a certain degree of disability and lower quality of life during premenstrual and menstrual phases.
authors: Division of Phoniatrics and Audiology, Department of Mental and Physical Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Naples SUN, Naples, Italy. Electronic address: mariarosaria.barillari@unina2.it.
authors: Maria Rosaria
authors: MR
authors: Barillari
authors: Department of Psychiatry, University of Naples SUN, Naples, Italy.
authors: Umberto
authors: U
authors: Volpe
authors: Department of Surgery, Policlinico "Mater Domini" of Catanzaro, Catanzaro, Italy.
authors: Nadia
authors: N
authors: Innaro
authors: Division of Phoniatrics and Audiology, Department of Mental and Physical Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Naples SUN, Naples, Italy.
authors: Umberto
authors: U
authors: Barillari
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006728:Hormones / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D007587:Job Description; D007828:Laryngoscopy; D008597:Menstrual Cycle / Q000097:blood; D016272:Occupational Health; D009790:Occupations; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D063346:Singing; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching; D013689:Telephone; D014741:Video Recording; D014832:Voice Disorders / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D014833:Voice Quality; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D006728:Hormones
keywords: Disability; Dysphonia; Female hormones; Menstrual cycle; Quality of life