Short-term and Long-term Efficacy of Oropharyngolaryngeal Strengthening Training on Voice Using a Mobile Healthcare Application in Elderly Women

Abstract

Objectives: A decline in vocal function due to aging interferes with successful communication in daily life, and negatively affects the quality of life. As part of an appropriate intervention for presbyphonia, adherence to regular voice exercise benefits and improves therapeutic effectiveness. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of oral and pharyngolaryngeal strength training on voice using a mobile healthcare application in elderly women. Methods: Eleven participants performed ‘A Successful Swallowing with Effortful Training (ASSET)’ at home for eight weeks using a mobile health application. A significant training effect was identified in seven participants (7 women, mean age= 74.6± 5.7 years) who performed the protocol appropriately. The effects of the training were measured by voice function evaluation and voice-related questionnaire assessment. Results: The post-training results showed significant increases in maximum phonation time, average fundamental frequency, and cepstral peak prominence smoothed, and significant decreases in jitter local, shimmer local, and noise to harmonic ratio (NHR) (p