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To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jvoice.2005.08.006 Byline: Ofer Amir (a), Odelia Ashkenazi (a), Tali Leibovitzh (a), Orit Michael (a), Yael Tavor (a), Michael Wolf (a)(a ) Abstract: Objective: To evaluate a translated version of the Voice Handicap Index (VHI) as a diagnostic tool for people with and without a laryngeal pathology, among Hebrew speakers. Study Design: Parallel group design. Methods: The VHI was translated and adapted to Hebrew. The translated version was, then, administered to a group of 182 patients with various laryngeal pathologies and a control group of 171 people with no laryngeal pathology. Based on the participants' responses to the VHI, statistical analyses were, initially, performed to assess validity and reliability, and then to evaluate group differences between the pathological and control groups and among the different pathological groups included in the study. Results: Statistical analyses showed high reliability values of the Hebrew version of the VHI (overall Cronbach's alpha r = 0.976). Participants' scores were not affected by their age (P = 0.156) or gender (P = 0.261). The participants in the control group obtained significantly lower scores on the overall VHI score, as well as on all three subscale scores, in comparison with the pathological group (P < 0.001). In addition, within the pathological group, patients with neurogenic pathologies received higher scores than all other pathological groups, whereas patients with laryngeal inflammation received lower scores than all other pathological groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The VHI is a powerful tool for quantifying patients' perceptions of their voice handicaps, and it maintained its power across translation. The VHI was shown to be valuable for the assessment of speakers with, as well as without laryngeal pathologies. Author Affiliation: (a) From the Department of Communication Disorders, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel (a ) Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, The Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Tel-Aviv, Israel Article History: Accepted 20 August 2005 Article Note: (footnote) Supported by the Tel-Aviv University Internal Fund; PI: Ofer Amir.

Summary: Vocal warmup is generally accepted as vital for singing performance. However, only a limited number of studies have evaluated this effect quantitatively. In this study, we evaluated the effect [...]

Summary: Most studies investigating the effect of sex hormones on the larynx and vocal folds focused on the voice quality of women either around menopause or during the menstrual cycle. [...]