COMD 5070 WEEK 4
- answer-NEUROLOGICAL FACTORS
muscle contraction is inherently unsmooth
individual motor neurons 'take turns' firing
overall contraction is the net effect of many
miniscule twitches
vocal fold tension is not perfectly static
_________ jitter/shimmer values would be associated with a "better" quaity of voice and
_________ jitter/shimmer values would be associated with a very rough/hoarse voice. -
answer-Low
High
"You cannot understand a disorder unless
you know how the normal system
works." - answer-....
A badly disordered voice might present much more noise, and you might find that the
harmonics don't stand out particular high above the noise when represented graphically.
This would represent a __________ harmonic to noise ratio. - answer-weaker
A normal voice typically has a _________ harmonic to noise ration, while a disordered
voice typically has a ______ harmonic to noise ration. - answer-stronger
weaker
AIRFLOW CAN BE INTERMITTENTLY TURBULENT - answer-air is flowing through the
glottis as it opens and closes and there may be times it is intermittently turbulent
driving pressure comes from lungs, up through the trachea, and through the larynx
as vocal folds just beginning to open, the pressure from below will force a large amount
of air through the tiny opening and this may create turbulence or a brief instant; until the
vocal folds have sufficiently separated to allow a smoother flow of air
as the vocal folds approximate, as they come closer, you are narrowing the glottis and
decreasing the space between them; because the pressure from below is constant, you
may get a decreasing diameter jet of air that is travelling faster and faster as they come
together and create turbulence
,Although perturbation and modulation are different kinds of instability in the voice, the
are __________ mutually exclusive. - answer-NOT
*You can have varying degrees of either one
AM - answer-amplitude modulation
Are EGGs dangerous? - answer-E.G.G. uses tiny currents
current is at a very high frequency
current is totally imperceptible (current is about 10 mA
voltage is about 0.5 V)
E.G.G. advantages (noninvasive, safe, easy to use)
Are there times when doing a rigid scope exam is alittle more challenging, or tricky? -
answer-Yes. Because all individuals differ in their exact internal anatomy of the vocal
tract, it is more challenging to perform a rigid scope exam on some people.
For example, they might have a hyperactive gag reflex, or a very small opening into the
back of the oral cavity as you get into the pharynx so you don't have as clear a view of
the vocal folds
As TA muscles increases its level of activation, the flow will _____________ because
the TA adduct the vocal folds - answer-decrease
As the voice goes from a comfortable level to a slightly louder level, you may actually
get a _______________ in vocal fold perturbation. - answer-decrease
*It is suggested that this is because there are more muscle fibers firing when you
activate the muscle more vigorously for louder phonation.
Both _______________ and ________________ are co-occurring all of the time. -
answer-harmonic components
noise components
*You can end up with a ration of harmonics to noise that software can measure as an
index of how clean and pure the voice is relative to any imperfections that are present in
phonation
Can SLPs conduct rigid scope exams? - answer-Yes, provided that they are trained.
While rigid endoscopes are typically used by ENTs, SLPs can be trained and qualified
to perform this type of assessment.
, These trained SLPs often work in voice clinics and routinely perform endoscopic
evaluations of voice clients in order to see vocal fold activity as it's happening.
Can SLPs perform flexible scope exams? - answer-Yes, but these are used mostly in a
medical setting so the SLP would have medical help available to the patient
Can the patterns of jitter and shimmer tell us that a person has a nodule or polyp? -
answer-No, because there are no distinct acoustic fingerprints that correspond exactly
to a given vocal pathology.
*Don't ever underestimate the value of trained human ear in the diagnoses process!
Compare open phase phonation vs. closed phase phonation - answer-open phase
phonation =
closed phase phonation =
Describe in detail the steps of performing an EGG/ - answer-Place two electrodes on
either side of the larynx directly on the lamina of the thyroid cartilage. (This allows for an
electrical current to pass from one side to the other at the level of the vocal folds)
As the current passes through from one electrode to another, the strength of the signal
will change, depending on the contact between the vocal folds.
If the vocal folds are in contact along their length = STRONGER SIGNAL
If the vocal folds are separated =
WEAKER SIGNAL
With each glottic cycle as a person phonates, you have an EGG signal that goes up and
down in strength for each cycle
The electrical signal that comes out of an EGG is referred to as a record of the vocal
fold contact area
Describe the components of the graph on the slide titled "pathological vocal tremor". -
answer-TOP
x-axis = time (2 seconds length)
y-axis = amplitude
BOTTOM
x-axis = time
y-axis 1 (RED)= fundamental frequency in Hz
y-axis 2 (BLUE) = amplitude in dB
- answer-NEUROLOGICAL FACTORS
muscle contraction is inherently unsmooth
individual motor neurons 'take turns' firing
overall contraction is the net effect of many
miniscule twitches
vocal fold tension is not perfectly static
_________ jitter/shimmer values would be associated with a "better" quaity of voice and
_________ jitter/shimmer values would be associated with a very rough/hoarse voice. -
answer-Low
High
"You cannot understand a disorder unless
you know how the normal system
works." - answer-....
A badly disordered voice might present much more noise, and you might find that the
harmonics don't stand out particular high above the noise when represented graphically.
This would represent a __________ harmonic to noise ratio. - answer-weaker
A normal voice typically has a _________ harmonic to noise ration, while a disordered
voice typically has a ______ harmonic to noise ration. - answer-stronger
weaker
AIRFLOW CAN BE INTERMITTENTLY TURBULENT - answer-air is flowing through the
glottis as it opens and closes and there may be times it is intermittently turbulent
driving pressure comes from lungs, up through the trachea, and through the larynx
as vocal folds just beginning to open, the pressure from below will force a large amount
of air through the tiny opening and this may create turbulence or a brief instant; until the
vocal folds have sufficiently separated to allow a smoother flow of air
as the vocal folds approximate, as they come closer, you are narrowing the glottis and
decreasing the space between them; because the pressure from below is constant, you
may get a decreasing diameter jet of air that is travelling faster and faster as they come
together and create turbulence
,Although perturbation and modulation are different kinds of instability in the voice, the
are __________ mutually exclusive. - answer-NOT
*You can have varying degrees of either one
AM - answer-amplitude modulation
Are EGGs dangerous? - answer-E.G.G. uses tiny currents
current is at a very high frequency
current is totally imperceptible (current is about 10 mA
voltage is about 0.5 V)
E.G.G. advantages (noninvasive, safe, easy to use)
Are there times when doing a rigid scope exam is alittle more challenging, or tricky? -
answer-Yes. Because all individuals differ in their exact internal anatomy of the vocal
tract, it is more challenging to perform a rigid scope exam on some people.
For example, they might have a hyperactive gag reflex, or a very small opening into the
back of the oral cavity as you get into the pharynx so you don't have as clear a view of
the vocal folds
As TA muscles increases its level of activation, the flow will _____________ because
the TA adduct the vocal folds - answer-decrease
As the voice goes from a comfortable level to a slightly louder level, you may actually
get a _______________ in vocal fold perturbation. - answer-decrease
*It is suggested that this is because there are more muscle fibers firing when you
activate the muscle more vigorously for louder phonation.
Both _______________ and ________________ are co-occurring all of the time. -
answer-harmonic components
noise components
*You can end up with a ration of harmonics to noise that software can measure as an
index of how clean and pure the voice is relative to any imperfections that are present in
phonation
Can SLPs conduct rigid scope exams? - answer-Yes, provided that they are trained.
While rigid endoscopes are typically used by ENTs, SLPs can be trained and qualified
to perform this type of assessment.
, These trained SLPs often work in voice clinics and routinely perform endoscopic
evaluations of voice clients in order to see vocal fold activity as it's happening.
Can SLPs perform flexible scope exams? - answer-Yes, but these are used mostly in a
medical setting so the SLP would have medical help available to the patient
Can the patterns of jitter and shimmer tell us that a person has a nodule or polyp? -
answer-No, because there are no distinct acoustic fingerprints that correspond exactly
to a given vocal pathology.
*Don't ever underestimate the value of trained human ear in the diagnoses process!
Compare open phase phonation vs. closed phase phonation - answer-open phase
phonation =
closed phase phonation =
Describe in detail the steps of performing an EGG/ - answer-Place two electrodes on
either side of the larynx directly on the lamina of the thyroid cartilage. (This allows for an
electrical current to pass from one side to the other at the level of the vocal folds)
As the current passes through from one electrode to another, the strength of the signal
will change, depending on the contact between the vocal folds.
If the vocal folds are in contact along their length = STRONGER SIGNAL
If the vocal folds are separated =
WEAKER SIGNAL
With each glottic cycle as a person phonates, you have an EGG signal that goes up and
down in strength for each cycle
The electrical signal that comes out of an EGG is referred to as a record of the vocal
fold contact area
Describe the components of the graph on the slide titled "pathological vocal tremor". -
answer-TOP
x-axis = time (2 seconds length)
y-axis = amplitude
BOTTOM
x-axis = time
y-axis 1 (RED)= fundamental frequency in Hz
y-axis 2 (BLUE) = amplitude in dB
