Investigating voice and brain responses in teachers with vocal fatigue

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This study examines the impact of stress on voice control and speech in early career female teachers and student teachers experiencing vocal fatigue. Participants will undergo stress induction and perform speech tasks while their brain activity, voice muscle activity, and psychobiological responses are measured. The goal is to compare the reactivity patterns of those who respond to stress with those who do not, alongside control participants without vocal fatigue. This research aims to uncover the underlying causes of primary muscle tension dysphonia and its effects on quality of life.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

Teachers (max. 10 years full-time) or student teachers in good health between 21 and 39 years with symptoms of vocal fatigue.

Control participants in good health between 21 and 39 years without symptoms of vocal fatigue.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Lefthandedness
* Smoking (past 5 years)
* Known changes of the vocal folds (e.g., vocal fold nodules), vocal fold paralysis, surgeries on the larynx or thryoid or current organic or neurological changes of the vocal folds or vocal function per videoendoscopy and -stroboscopy of the larynx
* History of voice therapy
* Hoarseness
* Respiratory illness, allergies (respiratory, silver), reflux or asthma at time of participation
* Hearing disorder or hearing aids
* Psychological, neurological or endocrinological disorders
* Psychotropic or steorid medications
* Body mass index \> 30
* Indications against MRI such as metail parts in or on the body (e.g., permanent dental prostheses or braces, screws, prostheses, piercings or large tattoos
* Nearsightedness \> -5 diopters, if only glasses are worn
* Claustrophobia
* Pregnancy

Where it's running

• University Hospital Bonn
  Bonn, Germany Recruiting

Study contacts

• Principal investigator: Maria Dietrich, PhD — University Hospital, Bonn
• Study coordinator: Maria Dietrich, PhD
• Email: Maria.Dietrich@ukbonn.de
• Phone: +49228287

Similar studies

Other studies for the same condition or treatment. Recruiting studies are listed first.

• Biofeedback and voice therapy for vocal hyperfunction

  This study is testing if adding biofeedback to regular voice therapy can help people with vocal hyperfunction improve their voice use in everyday life.

  Recruiting at 2 sites Early Phase 1 Massachusetts General Hospital · Boston, Massachusetts and 1 other locations · NCT05970562

• Treatment of benign vocal fold lesions using steroid and hyaluronidase injections

  This study is testing if injections of steroids and hyaluronidase can help people with benign vocal fold lesions improve their voice and reduce the size of the lesions without needing surgery.

  Recruiting Early Phase 1 Mansoura University · Al Mansurah, Dakahlia Governorate · NCT06854380

• Effects of Flow Ball Phonation on Professional Voice Users

  This study tests whether using a flow ball device can help professional voice users improve their vocal health and performance compared to other voice treatments.

  Recruiting University Ghent · Ghent, East-Flanders · NCT06960772

• Virtual reality training for public speaking in higher-education students

  This project tests whether virtual reality practice combined with voice and fluency training helps French-speaking higher-education students improve their public speaking.

  Recruiting University of Liege · Liège, Liège · NCT07392554

• Building a short video and audio database of cancer pain to help AI recognize patient pain

  This project collects short face and voice recordings from adults with cancer who do and don't have pain to help test AI that tries to recognize pain from expressions.

  Recruiting Erasmus Medical Center · Rotterdam, South Holland · NCT07262632

• Evaluating music and voice skills in cochlear implant users

  This study is testing how well kids and adults with cochlear implants enjoy and understand music compared to people with normal hearing.

  Recruiting Fundacion para la Investigacion Biomedica del Hospital Universitario la Paz · Madrid, Madrid · NCT05319678

How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.