Table 1
Frequency and causes of voice problems in professional singers and actors during their studies, over the last year and over their entire careers. Fisher’s exact test and chi-squared test were used for statistical analysis. (URI = upper respiratory tract infection).
| Paramater | Professional Singers N=63 | Professional Actors N=65 | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent voice problems during their studies | 1 | 1 | 1.000 |
| Frequent voice problems in the last year | 9 | 5 | 0.265 |
| Frequent voice problems in their careers | 13 | 8 | 0.241 |
| Cause of voice problems | |||
| • URI | 5 | 7 | |
| • vocal load | 8 | 6 | 0.729 |
| • URI + vocal load | 37 | 39 |
Table 2
Parameters affecting voice quality in professional singers and in professional actors. Fisher’s exact test and Mann-Whitney test were used for statistical analysis.
| Paramater | Professional Singers N=63 | Professional Actors N=65 | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoking | 11 | 33 | 0.000 |
| Symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux | 26 | 15 | 0.037 |
| Frequent throat clearing | 27 | 33 | 0.376 |
| Allergies, asthma | 19 | 10 | 0.058 |
| Speaking loudly | 26 | 57 | 0.000 |
| Shouting frequently | 4 | 29 | 0.000 |
| Fast speaking rate | 16 | 44 | 0.000 |
| Voice rest during voice problems | 34 | 3 | 0.254 |
| Vocal load / hours per day (mean/standard deviation) | 6.25 / 2.44 | 4.23 / 1.20 | 0.000 |
| Vocal load during spare time | 21 | 19 | 0.704 |
Table 3
Parameters affecting voice quality in professional singers with frequent voice problems in their careers and in professional singers without frequent voice problems. Fisher’s exact test, t-test, and Mann-Whitney test were used for statistical analysis.
| Paramater | Professional Singers With Frequent Voice Problems N=13 | Professional Singers Without Frequent Voice Problems N=50 | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age in years (mean / standard deviation) | 44.38 / 9.13 | 45.22 / 12.14 | 0.818 |
| Length of career in years (mean / standard deviation) | 20.00 / 8.82 | 18.52 / 10.99 | 0.655 |
| Vocal load in h/day (mean / standard deviation) | 4.46 / 1.18 | 4.16 / 1.21 | 0.430 |
| Smoking | 4 | 7 | 0.216 |
| Symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux | 8 | 18 | 0.216 |
| Frequent throat clearing | 7 | 20 | 0.531 |
| Allergies, asthma | 7 | 12 | 0.048 |
| Speaking loudly | 9 | 17 | 0.029 |
| Shouting frequently | 1 | 3 | 1.000 |
| Fast speaking rate | 6 | 10 | 0.075 |
| Vocal load during spare time | 6 | 15 | 0.329 |
Table 4
Parameters affecting voice quality in professional actors with frequent voice problems in their careers and in professional actors without frequent voice problems. Fisher’s exact test, t-test, and Mann-Whitney test were used for statistical analysis.
| Paramater | Professional Actors With Frequent Voice Problems N=8 | Professional Actors Without Frequent Voice Problems N=56 | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age in years (mean / standard deviation) | 44.38 / 9.13 | 45.22 / 12.14 | 0.818 |
| Length of career in years (mean / standard deviation) | 20.00 / 8.82 | 18.52 / 10.99 | 0.655 |
| Vocal load in h/day (mean / standard deviation) | 4.46 / 1.18 | 4.16 / 1.21 | 0.430 |
| Smoking | 6 | 27 | 0.259 |
| Symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux | 2 | 12 | 1.000 |
| Frequent throat clearing | 5 | 27 | 0.708 |
| Allergies, asthma | 0 | 10 | 0.337 |
| Speaking loudly | 7 | 49 | 1.000 |
| Shouting frequently | 4 | 25 | 1.000 |
| Fast speaking rate | 4 | 40 | 0.244 |
| Vocal load during spare time | 2 | 17 | 1.000 |