title: "Is voice a marker for Autism spectrum disorder? A systematic review and meta-analysis".
abstract: Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) tend to show distinctive, atypical acoustic patterns of speech. These behaviors affect social interactions and social development and could represent a non-invasive marker for ASD. We systematically reviewed the literature quantifying acoustic patterns in ASD. Search terms were: (prosody OR intonation OR inflection OR intensity OR pitch OR fundamental frequency OR speech rate OR voice quality OR acoustic) AND (autis* OR Asperger). Results were filtered to include only: empirical studies quantifying acoustic features of vocal production in ASD, with a sample size >2, and the inclusion of a neurotypical comparison group and/or correlations between acoustic measures and severity of clinical features. We identified 34 articles, including 30 univariate studies and 15 multivariate machine-learning studies. We performed meta-analyses of the univariate studies, identifying significant differences in mean pitch and pitch range between individuals with ASD and comparison participants (Cohen's d of 0.4-0.5 and discriminatory accuracy of about 61-64%). The multivariate studies reported higher accuracies than the univariate studies (63-96%). However, the methods used and the acoustic features investigated were too diverse for performing meta-analysis. We conclude that multivariate studies of acoustic patterns are a promising but yet unsystematic avenue for establishing ASD markers. We outline three recommendations for future studies: open data, open methods, and theory-driven research. Autism Res 2017, 10: 384-407. © 2016 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors: The Interacting Minds Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.
authors: Riccardo
authors: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4775-5219
authors: R
authors: Fusaroli
authors: Autism Research Group, City University London, London, UK.
authors: Anna
authors: A
authors: Lambrechts
authors: The Interacting Minds Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.|Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.|Calleva Research Centre for Evolution and Human Sciences, Magdalen College, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors: Dan
authors: D
authors: Bang
authors: Autism Research Group, City University London, London, UK.
authors: Dermot M
authors: DM
authors: Bowler
authors: Autism Research Group, City University London, London, UK.
authors: Sebastian B
authors: SB
authors: Gaigg
mesh_terms: D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013060:Speech / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: acoustic properties; biomarker; machine learning; speech; voice