Age and Sex Comparison of Aerodynamic Phonation Measurements Using Noninvasive Assessment

Purpose: The goal of this study was to present vocal aerodynamic measurements from pediatric and adult participant pools. There are a number of anatomical changes involving the larynx and vocal folds that occur as children age and become adults. Data were collected using two methods of noninvasive aerodynamic assessment: mechanical interruption and labial interruption. Method: A total of 154 participants aged 4-24 years old took part in this study. Ten trials were performed for both methods of airway interruption. To perform mechanical interruption, participants phonated /alpha/ for 10 s trials while a balloon valve interrupted phonation 5 times. For labial interruption, participants said /p alpha/ 5 times at comfortable and quiet volumes. Aerodynamic measures included subglottal pressure, phonation threshold pressure, mean airflow, laryngeal resistance, and others. Results: One hundred one participants (51 females) successfully completed testing with both methods. Eight out of 20 measurements were found to have a statistically significant effect of participant age on measurements. Sex alone had a significant effect on vocal efficiency for the labial quiet method. Conclusions: The data discussed here can be used to view age and sex trends in vocal aerodynamic measurements. When using either method of mechanical or labial interruption, participant age needs to be taken into account to properly interpret several aerodynamic parameters. A participant's sex is not as important when using these methods.