EMOTIONAL SYMPTOMS IN PATIENTS WITH VOICE DISORDERS

Ano: 2013 | Volume: 17 | Número: Suplemento

Autores: Martinez CC, Meneghini DA, Cassol M.

Resumo Inglês:

This study aimed to investigate the presence of anxiety and depression symptoms in dysphonic patients. It is a cross-sectional study that assessed 27 patients undergoing ambulatory speech therapy in the Otorhynolaryngology Service of Irmandade Santa Casa de Misericórdia de Porto Alegre Hospital (ISCMPA) (Porto Alegre-RS, Brazil) during a 9-month period. Patients were referred to the ambulatory service after medical indication for voice therapy. Voice assessment was based on auditory-perceptive evaluation of voice quality (e.g., GRBASI Scale) and measurement of anxiety and depression symptoms (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale [HADS]). Twenty 20 (74.1%) patients were women who had a mean age of 56.11 years old (with a standard deviation of ± 14.78 years). The most frequent laryngeal lesion was presbilarynx (29.6% of women). Among the disorders in the GRBASI analysis, the parameter "voice disorder grade" had a prevalence of moderate rate (in 48.1% of women), followed by severe rate (in 29.6% of women). The HADS findings showed that in the item "Anxiety," 14 (51.8%) patients had an amended score. In the item of "Depression," 5 (18.5%) patients had an amended score. It is believed that a laryngeal disorderoccurred most frequently because a great number of the sample was composed of elderly individuals. The preliminary findings of this study confirm reports in the literature, that suggest that emotional symptoms can be related to voice disorders. Significant and reliable results must arise from more expressive samples. This study highlights the necessity to continue investigating this topic by obtaining a larger sample and a better understanding concerning the relation of the processes involving voice and emotional aspects.