The Effects of Remote Signal Transmission and Recording on Acoustical Measures of Simulated Essential Vocal Tremor: Considerations for Remote Treatment Research and Telepractice.
Rosemary A Lester-Smith, Charles G Jebaily, Brad H Story
PMID 34702610WHAT IT FOUND
In simulated vocal tremor, remote Zoom audio changed some voice tremor measures, especially intensity modulation and voice quality.
Pitch modulation measures stayed close to local recordings, so telepractice should not rely on remote intensity or quality estimates alone.
Key findings
01Pitch modulation extent averaged 4.8% in original, Audacity, Zoom, and Audio Hijack recordings, while pitch modulation rate averaged 5.0 Hz in original and Audacity and 5.1 Hz in Zoom and Audio Hijack.
02Intensity modulation extent averaged 5.8% in original and 5.9% in Audacity, but 7.2% in Zoom and 7.5% in Audio Hijack; intensity modulation rate averaged 12.4 Hz and 12.2 Hz in original and Audacity, but 15.8 Hz and 15.6 Hz in Zoom and Audio Hijack.
03CPPS averaged 18.8 dB in original and Audacity recordings, but 14.6 dB in Zoom and 13.8 dB in Audio Hijack recordings.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study used simulated samples of vocal tremor, not people with essential vocal tremor, so it cannot show how real clients would respond. The recording setup used specific laptops, Zoom for Healthcare, and disabled audio enhancements, but intermittent signal changes still occurred, so the results may not apply to all home computers, microphones, internet conditions, or Zoom settings. The simulations used male and female models with fixed pitch modulation rate and several voice qualities, so they do not cover the full range of real tremor severity, vowels, or client devices. The study measured recording differences but did not test whether those differences change clinical decisions or patient outcomes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Zoom audio is acceptable for all remote vocal tremor assessment. The study found changes in intensity modulation and voice quality, and it recommends local client-end recordings when accuracy matters.