1
|
Hamdan AL, Jabbour C, Ghanem A, Ghanem P. The Impact of Masking Habits on Voice in a Sub-population of Healthcare Workers. J Voice 2024; 38:918-921. [PMID: 34986996 PMCID: PMC8720484 DOI: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2021.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Revised: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the impact of face masks on voice in a sub-population of healthcare workers, namely residents, medical students, and nurses, during the COVID-19 era. MATERIALS AND METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted in a large tertiary care center where a 23-items web-based questionnaire was conveyed to sub-population of healthcare professionals, namely residents, medical students, and nurses. The questionnaire included demographic data, type, and duration of mask use. Voice outcome measures included the Voice Handicap Index (VHI)-10 questionnaire and the visual analogue scale for vocal effort and vocal fatigue. RESULTS A total of 178 participants answered the survey. One third had an abnormal score on the VHI-10 questionnaire, one third reported moderate to severe vocal fatigue, and 45% of the participants had moderate to severe vocal effort based on a visual analogue scale score. There was a significant association between the type of mask used and vocal fatigue (P = 0.044). No significant association was seen between the duration of mask used and the different voice outcome measures. CONCLUSION Masking habits during the COVID-19 pandemic were associated with a high prevalence of vocal fatigue, effort and abnormal VHI-10 score among residents, medical students, and nurses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abdul-Latif Hamdan
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon.
| | - Christopher Jabbour
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Anthony Ghanem
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Paola Ghanem
- Department of Medical Oncology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Chen F, She W, Zeng F, Gao M, Wen C, Liu G, Wu L, Wu Y, Zhang C. Optimization strategy of community planning for environmental health and public health in smart city under multi-objectives. Front Public Health 2024; 12:1347122. [PMID: 38420025 PMCID: PMC10899508 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1347122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
As population density increases, environmental hygiene and public health become increasingly severe. As the space where residents stay for the longest time and have the most profound impact on their physical and mental health, the quality of the environment in urban communities largely determines the degree to which residents engage in physical activity, bear the risk of pollution exposure, and obtain healthy food. Therefore, in order to ensure the physical and mental health of residents, this study proposes community planning guided by environmental hygiene and public health, and establishes an environmental health assessment system for this purpose. This system evaluates the community environment from four aspects: land use, service facilities, site convenience, and environmental quality. Established the diversity, density, road network connectivity and facilities accessibility nine criteria, as well as the land function of mix, plot ratio, food environment, network ring α and connected β index, pavement risk level, green configuration and neighborhood material environment disorder degree of 27 indicators of community built environmental evaluation index system. The data is collected through field survey, questionnaire distribution, resident interview and data mapping, and the established evaluation index system is used to evaluate the construction environment of the community. The experimental research data included population data, CAD plan, land use data, street data, POI point data, building data and bus station data, etc. 273 questionnaires were distributed, 264 were recovered, 8 invalid questionnaires were removed, and 256 valid questionnaires were obtained. These experiments confirm that land use, service facilities, site convenience, and environmental quality have a significant impact on the built environment of communities, with impact weights of 0.513, 0.227, 0.135, and 0.125, respectively. The above weights are calculated based on the index judgment matrix and the eigenvectors. The scores of land use, service facilities, site convenience, and environmental quality for the study subjects were 3.44, 1.46, 0.94, and 0.51, respectively, among them, the land use score is less than 3.85, the 1 service facility score is less than 1.71, the site convenience score is less than 1.01, and the environmental quality score is less than 0.94; indicating that the community has serious problems such as single land use types, pollution exposure, and difficulty in obtaining healthy food. Therefore, community planning and transformation based on land use, service facilities, venue convenience, and environmental quality can effectively improve the physical and mental health of residents. In the specific community transformation plan, artificial intelligence and data-driven methods can be used to optimize the land use plan, service facility configuration, site convenience transformation and environmental quality improvement, so as to formulate the optimal community transformation plan and improve the comfort and happiness of community residents. In the future, on the basis of the existing research, the selection of community types will be further enriched and the research cases will be expanded. And through the in-depth practical study of the case, the constructed evaluation index system is optimized and improved to make it more scientific. At the same time, as urban renewal and design have entered the era of stock planning, based on the more perfect evaluation index system, more specific and detailed system discussion of the built communities with public health problems, in order to provide more detailed services for the construction of a better and healthy living environment in the future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fujiang Chen
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
- National Dam Safety Research Center, Wuhan, China
- School of Public Administration, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, Chengdu, China
- The Research Center for Social Development and Social Risk Control of the Key Research Base of Philosophy and Social Sciences in Sichuan Province, Chengdu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Wuyue She
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| | - Feng Zeng
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
- National Dam Safety Research Center, Wuhan, China
- The Research Center for Social Development and Social Risk Control of the Key Research Base of Philosophy and Social Sciences in Sichuan Province, Chengdu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Meiben Gao
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
- National Dam Safety Research Center, Wuhan, China
- The Research Center for Social Development and Social Risk Control of the Key Research Base of Philosophy and Social Sciences in Sichuan Province, Chengdu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Chao Wen
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| | - Guoxin Liu
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| | - Lixun Wu
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yang Wu
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| | - Chi Zhang
- School of Emergency Management, Xihua University, Chengdu, China
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Kim JS, Kim S, Moon TH, Park S, Kim SH, Kim S, Lee DH, Kim BG, Chang KH, Park JO. Effect of Occupational Noise Exposure on the Prevalence of Benign Vocal Fold Lesions: A Nationwide Population-Based Study. Clin Exp Otorhinolaryngol 2023; 16:87-94. [PMID: 36521487 PMCID: PMC9985988 DOI: 10.21053/ceo.2022.01298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Voice abuse in noisy environments can result in voice disorders. However, insufficient studies have sought to differentiate vocal cord lesions through laryngoscopic examinations among workers in noisy environments. This study investigated the relationship between a history of noise exposure in the workplace and benign vocal fold lesions (BVFLs). METHODS We used Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 2010 to 2012. The chi-square test was used to compare characteristics between two groups according to the presence or absence of BVFLs. To investigate the association between BVFLs and noise exposure in the workplace, we calculated adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS In total, 10,170 participants with available laryngoscopy. RESULTS were enrolled. Smoking history, hypertension, diabetes, and exposure to noise for more than 3 months at the workplace were significantly more common in participants with BVFLs. After adjusting for age, sex, smoking, drinking, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, income, education, and occupation as confounders, we confirmed that BVFLs were 1.52 times more likely (95% CI, 1.157-1.990) to occur in individuals with occupational noise exposure. CONCLUSION Working in a noisy environment could induce BVFLs in workers through voice abuse. Social recognition that a noisy environment is a risk factor for BVFLs needs to be improved, and preventive measures should be implemented.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ji-Sun Kim
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sukil Kim
- Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Tae-Hoon Moon
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Soomin Park
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Seung Hwa Kim
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Subin Kim
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Dong-Hyun Lee
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Byung Guk Kim
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Ki-Hong Chang
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Jun-Ook Park
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Nusseck M, Immerz A, Richter B, Traser L. Vocal Behavior of Teachers Reading with Raised Voice in a Noisy Environment. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph19158929. [PMID: 35897294 PMCID: PMC9331438 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19158929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2022] [Revised: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
(1) Objective: Teaching is a particularly voice-demanding occupation. Voice training provided during teachers’ education is often insufficient and thus teachers are at risk of developing voice disorders. Vocal demands during teaching are not only characterized by speaking for long durations but also by speaking in noisy environments. This provokes the so-called Lombard effect, which intuitively leads to an increase in voice intensity, pitch and phonation time in laboratory studies. However, this effect has not been thoroughly investigated in realistic teaching scenarios. (2) Methods: This study thus examined how 13 experienced, but vocally untrained, teachers behaved when reading in a noisy compared to quiet background environment. The quiet and noisy conditions were provided by a live audience either listening quietly or making noise by talking to each other. By using a portable voice accumulator, the fundamental frequency, sound pressure level of the voice and the noise as well as the phonation time were recorded in both conditions. (3) Results: The results showed that the teachers mainly responded according to the Lombard effect. In addition, analysis of phonation time revealed that they failed to increase inhalation time and appeared to lose articulation through the shortening of voiceless consonants in the noisy condition. (4) Conclusions: The teachers demonstrated vocally demanding behavior when speaking in the noisy condition, which can lead to vocal fatigue and cause dysphonia. The findings underline the necessity for specific voice training in teachers’ education, and the content of such training is discussed in light of the results.
Collapse
|