Does pregnancy alter voice quality?

Abstract

ABSTRACT Context: Female voice is extremely sensitive to hormonal changes. The changes in the levels of estrogen and progesterone during pregnancy trimesters affect voice by causing edema or swelling of the vocal fold tissues. Aims: The present study was designed to quantify the subtle changes in voice objectively in terms of acoustic and aerodynamic parameters related to hormonal changes associated with pregnancy and their variation across the trimesters of pregnancy among the participants in comparison with postpartum pregnant women. Settings and Design: Prospective case control observational study conducted at Yenepoya Medical College Hospital, Yenepoya (Deemed to be University), Mangalore, Karnataka, South India. Methods and Materials: A total of 40 participants in the age group of 20–45 years took part in the study. Thirty pregnant women in three different trimesters (10 in each) were compared with postpartum group for selected acoustic and aerodynamic parameters of voice. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistics and analysis of variance. Results: The selected acoustic parameters like average fundamental frequency, shimmer in dB, and harmonics-to-noise ratio (HNR) of pregnant woman showed a statistically significant difference as compared to postpartum women. Conclusions: Perceived quality of voice and ease of production are different across the timeline of pregnancy. Maximum phonation duration was reduced among pregnant women. Significant differences were observed in the values of fundamental frequency, Shimmer, and HNR among pregnant women as compared to postpartum women indicating decreased quality and increased effort of voice production as the time progresses from conception to delivery.