How the Auditory Perceived Characteristics of Voice Disturbances - Term Paper Example

Details How the Auditorily Perceived Characteristics of Voice Disturbances Associated with Parkinson's disease and Spastic Dysphonia Relate to TheirRespective Underlying Pathology Auditory plays an important role and functions to good communications. Hearing is the vital part of day-to-day human life. Human skills in communication system rely on the human senses such as hearing. The approach of hearing sensory is depends to the condition of auditory system. Auditory processing is the term used to describe the reactions of brain in transmitting and interpretation of sounds. When ear received sounds, the role of auditory stimulus travels along neural pathway where the sound is process. Normal listener can immediately identify the sounds from the noise. In this condition he/she has good interpretations to the transmitting information from the sounds through the brain. In contrast to the impaired hearing disorder patients it is conversely impacted to the system. They don't have ability to identify correct information and noise from the sounds. Auditory neuropathy refers to the hearing loss of individual (Doyle KJ, 1998). Hearing loss caused several factors such as absent or loss of outer hair cell, abnormal response of auditory to the sounds, and last loss of pure tone. Hearing impairments, by behavioral and psychological testing, were somewhat compatible to the auditory portion in cranial nerve. Speech-language disease or voice disturbances in Parkinson's disease and spastic dysphonia are also impacted to the good communication structures. The voice disease in this two different case influenced quality spoken words. Patients with this kind of disease, their speech-language caused trouble to listeners to understand their spoken words. There are rare cases which have enough capability to hear the words clearly but most often big problems in speaking abilities. Voice characteristics in Parkinson's disease are low in volume or whispering-like structures, or expressionless that worsened to the impaired hearing person to understand the words. Spastic dysphonia on the other hand, voice is characterized by breathiness like, hoarseness, or rough. It is also is known as slang, blurred, or tangled voice. These disabilities always have problem in speech-language quality although very rarely small numbers of them have an ability to communicate and understand spoken words clearly even in mild cases. In orders to understand people with impaired hearing loss, they possessed severe repetitions of words; they have difficulties in listening, and poor condition of memory. Somewhat they have an ability to speak words clearly although in very unusual ways i.e. high in volume. Above all, in other theorem scientist believes that the hearing loss might connect to abnormal neuromuscular movements from the brain. Since neuron is responsible for the movement control in the body. It is also neuron whose secretes dopamine-producing cells in the brain caused Parkinson's disease born. Hence, Parkinson's disease and spastic dysphonia are from the brain functions. Until this time, the main caused of these two diseases are still medical mystery. Although with the help of some successful scientific research and advance technology we can namely pinpointing few effective treatments. Until this time, there are no enough scientific evidence can explain and proof that all of these are biologically helpful to cure the disease without any harmful side effects in other part of the body. Thalamotomy is one example of surgery practices which worsened the condition of speech and other cognitive problem although is reduced tremor symptoms in PD. Despite the importance of vocalization to speech-language, neural mechanisms including sensory feedback controls voice productions. Auditory as a sensory feedback helps the stabilization of voice, which control voice during on-going vocalization. But the auditory reactions in voice disturbances related to neuromuscular disease cannot easily identify. In relation to this, normal listener has ability to clarified sounds from noise once the sound transmits from the ear through the brain that is already discussed in early part of this paper. Recently there are several studies in speech language recognition test using several strategies. These are speech recognitions methods with speech resolution-channels, and spectral resolutions to the normal listeners and implanted cochlear users. Unfortunately some are not agree due to its traditional way although methods are very helpful in assessing voice tone to the hearing status of the patients. Aside from this, some of the results are proven significant in identifying and classifying appropriate diagnosis and treatments before surgery. According to the study of speech recognitions method using time and sentence expansion associated with normal listeners and implanted cochlear users. Normal listener is unaffected by time expansion in terms of speech resolution pattern. However time-speech expansion recognition is varied by spectral resolution. When the spectral resolution is available the speech recognition is unaffected if the sentence duration is shortened from its original length. However in interpreting speech recognition by time-compressed, spectral resolution reduced due to its limitation in abilities (Fu QJ, 2001). On the other hand, speech recognition by normal listeners which indicates advantages and improvements in functions of spectral channels based on its increasing numbers. But not in the cochlear implants users, speech recognitions do not improved where used electrodes are activated and relatively high in numbers. Insignificantly, the study assumed it is due to the decreased of frequency selectivity caused by channel interactions (D., 2006). Another method is speech recognition using noise as a function of spectral channels that vary in numbers. Speech recognition shows good advantages and improvements acting functional effects in speech channels. In this method both normal listeners and implanted cochlear stimuli are subjected to the test. This time, the objective is observed and knows different behavioral responses with these two media of listeners in different situation. Speech recognition was measured to act a spectral resolution, speech-to-noise ratio in normal conditions, and cochlear implant. The method of speech recognition is thru vowel, consonants, word, and sentence reading passage which performed in three different strategies. In the over-all, normal listeners has good result of raising continually in numbers of spectral resolution channels but the noise level, and vowels in speak strategies did not improved to the expected number of electrons. In the three strategies, the cochlear implants gained the highest performances in term of expected number in electrons. Comparing to the normal listeners the over-all scores of implanted stimuli was poor in all strategies. The test brought ideas regarding the number of spectral channels to the number of electrodes that identify noise from the speech (Friesen LM, 2001). Likewise the method of speech recognition as a function of intensity resolution are tested both normal listener and cochlear implant listeners. Based on result, it significantly shows contrast speech recognition in vowel and consonant in two different cases. The result was influence by the function of number of channels and materials used. The number of channels is an example of spectral resolution. Between spectral resolution and intensity resolution had an inversely relationship to normal listeners recognizing speech in the experiment. Instances, spectral resolution is poor in condition because relative amount of fine intensity resolution are needed to achieve good understanding in quality voice volume. Conversely intensity resolution to the spectral resolutions in condition to achieve asymptotic performance (Loizou PC, 2000). Speaking evaluation as early as possible is an effective method. It may reduce symptoms during early stage. Today main cause of PD and SD disorders remains a medical mystery. Unpredictably the real cause, surgeons believes it is related to neurohormonal imbalance that involves of basal ganglia in central nervous system. The scientific speculations of these consequences are due to ultimate manifestation peripherally of throat through extra pyramidal motor system. Some clinicians tend to believe that SD has a relationship in the laryngeal stuttering. The conditions between similarities of glottal symptoms of spastic dysphonia and oral ones of stuttered. Nowadays Lee Silverman Voice Therapy the most common speech treatment for communications disorders associated with neurological problems (Robinson, 2005). LVST is a specialized voice therapy treatment which designed to improve the voice volume. This is a variety of activities and workshops where the patients are taught different methods to increase their vocal efforts. Patients are trained correct volume and even self-control when they feel speaking is beyond normal tone. The treatment is sustained for vowel phonations, and reading a passage. Each change in vocal functions are analyzed and measured by acoustic of vocal loudness. LSVT is known for its positive changes in over all quality of oral communication (Ramig LO, 2001). Auditory neuropathy is hearing disorder characterized by abnormal responses of auditory system. Many risks factors are involved to its underlying pathology and considered and identify before accurate diagnose are put in practiced (Wang Q, 2003). In the case of auditory disorders, speech-language pathologist and audiologists can work as a team to provide best outcome in the treatment. Speech-language pathologists who evaluate patients' voice quality are skilled enough to diagnose and treat voice, speech, and language disorders. Also he/she focused on how the person used and understand languages. Audiologists assess the processing problems. First the pathologist will determine the degree of hearing disorder or the level of hearing loss relying to appropriate treatment. The examination result will identify strengths and weaknesses of auditory system. Sometimes strengths and weakness will determine and match other remedial intervention strategies. Remediation will be based on speech-language or psycho-educational testing. Other health professionals used advance devices to detect applicable rehabilitations of disorder such as auditory brainstem response or ABR and otoacoustic emission or OAE. Auditory brainstem response test and otoacoustic emissions' test are done in scanning method. ABR test is a method that used electrodes which placed in brain and ear of patients to determine the condition of brain's functions. OAE test used specialized tiny microphone inserted into ear canal to monitor sounds that stimuli response thru series of clicks. Also hearing aid or personal listening devices such as frequency modulation or FM system are very useful for mild cases. However there was a study of implants surgery using scala tympani electrode and unilaterally stimulated that creates impacts on speech-processing strategies. The study was design to determine the physiological and histopathollogical effects in the intracochlear electrical stimulation. With the use of frequency-specific stimuli parameter the cause of extensive hearing loss occurred in the basal region of cochlea are detected. The study aims a proper application of speech-processing strategies in relation in stimulation of auditory nerves based on the electrical stimulation result (Xu J, 1997). In the previous research there are some criticisms regarding to traditional rating scale in the pathological voice measures like speech recognition methods associated with different stimuli. Pathological parameters are alternative method that assessed quality listeners and impaired patients thru systematic approach in the auditory system. In this method, both normal listeners and cochlear implanted stimuli are fully demonstrated and compare in the natural and synthetic voice system with corresponding adjustment in the speech synthesizer parameter. The function of speech synthesizer is to find ways that will match auditory condition to the voice stimuli. Its design aimed to replace unstable internal disorders symptoms such as breathiness and roughness esp. in SD as well as hypothetical disagreements to the traditional rating scale. The results, due to the significant adjustment in the noise level give hopes for the high possibility to target voice quality that will match in the stimuli. Combined judgment in comparison to the noise in natural stimuli are also undergo test thru traditional rating scale. Regarding to the research result, the assessment of voice, quality, and analysis-synthesis can contribute to the broad understanding of disease. Reference: D., B. (2006). Speech recognition in normal hearing and sensorineural hearing loss as a function of the number of spectral channels. J Acoust Soc Am. , 120(5 pt 1), 2908-2925. Doyle KJ, S. A., S.Y. (1998). Auditory Neuropathy in Childhood. Laryngoscope, 108(9), 1374-1377. Friesen LM, S. R., Baskent D, Wang X. (2001). Speech recognition in noise as a function of the number of spectral channels: comparison of acoustic hearing and cochlear implants. J Acoust Soc Am., 110(2), 1150-1163. Fu QJ, G. J. r., Wang X. (2001). Recognition of time-distorted sentences by normal-hearing and cochlear-implant listeners. J Acoust Soc Am., 109(1), 379-384. Loizou PC, D. M., Poroy O, Spahr T. (2000). Speech recognition by normal-hearing and cochlear implant listeners as a function of intensity resolution. J Acoust Soc Am., 108(5 Pt 1), 2377-2387. Read More