Parkinson's Disease Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Parkinson's Disease, including details on symptoms, treatment, genetics, medication.

Task-based profile of vocal intensity decline in Parkinson's disease.

Rosen KM, Kent RD, Duffy JR

Waisman Center, Madison, WI 53705, USA. rosen@waisman.wisc.edu

This study examines intensity decay in the phonation of persons with Parkinson's disease (PD). The decline in vocal intensity (determined by linear regression of the intensity envelope) was compared across the following tasks: vowel prolongation, syllable repetition (diadochokinesis, DDK), isolated sentences and conversation. In contrast to previous studies, PD speakers demonstrated no significant differences in intensity decline from healthy speakers in vowel prolongation. The vocal intensity of speakers with PD declined more rapidly than that of controls in DDK tasks. While intensity slopes in conversation were more variable in both groups, some participants with PD exhibited abrupt changes in intensity. Results indicate that the DDK is particularly useful for describing intensity decay associated with PD. However, considering the inconsistent group differences across tasks, and the discrepant findings from previous studies, intensity decay is not a robust symptom of PD.

Published 18 January 2005 in Folia Phoniatr Logop, 57(1): 28-37.
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