The Effect of Masks and Respirators on Acoustic Voice Analysis During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Ebru Karakaya Gojayev, Zahide Çiler Büyükatalay, Tuğba Akyüz and 2 others
PMID 34961655WHAT IT FOUND
Surgical masks do not significantly alter standard acoustic voice analysis results.
FFP3 respirators affect shimmer and HNR values, making them unreliable for those specific measures. Sex matters: FFP3 masks alter more parameters in men than women. Clinicians should choose masks based on which voice metrics they need to evaluate.
Key findings
01No statistically significant difference was found between voice analyses without a mask, with a surgical mask, and with an FFP3 respirator for fundamental frequency, jitter, maximum phonation time, and s/z ratio.
02Voice analysis with an FFP3 respirator produced significantly lower shimmer values and higher harmonics-to-noise ratio (HNR) values compared to surgical masks and no mask.
03When analyzed separately by sex, the number of reliable parameters decreased, with FFP3 respirators showing significant differences in jitter, shimmer, MPT, and HNR for male participants.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study did not use a physical model (such as a mechanical larynx), so observed changes could be due to participants altering their vocal effort or technique when wearing different masks. The study was conducted over a long period due to pandemic restrictions, which may have introduced variability in testing conditions. The participants were healthy adults with no voice complaints, so results may not generalize to patients with dysphonia or laryngeal pathology.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume all mask types are equivalent for voice analysis. While surgical masks appear reliable, FFP3 respirators significantly alter shimmer and HNR values in the overall group, and affect more parameters in men. Interpreting these altered values as clinical findings could lead to incorrect conclusions about vocal health.