A Scoping Review on the Intersection Between Voice and Swallowing Measures in Healthy and Disordered Populations.

Purpose: Voice and swallowing are distinct functions that share anatomical and physiological properties; however, research investigating their intersection is limited. The purpose of this scoping review was to explore the literature surrounding the relationship between voice and swallowing measures in healthy adults and those with non-degenerative disorders. Specifically, we aimed to elucidate whether objective voice measures could be used as correlates of swallowing function.

Method: We systematically searched four databases (Embase, PubMed, CINAHL, and Web of Science) for relevant literature using a combination of key words and controlled vocabulary generated from the Yale Mesh Analyzer. The inclusion criteria consisted of peer-reviewed studies in the English language that reported on healthy adults and/or patients with non-degenerative neurological disorders and pulmonary diseases and contained instrumental and/or objective voice and swallowing measures. Two raters completed the abstract screening process followed by independent full-text reviews. Case studies, review studies, gray literature, or abstract-only studies were excluded.

Results: Among 5,485 screened studies, 182 were fully reviewed, with only 11 studies meeting the inclusion criteria. Eight studies found an association between voice and swallowing objective measures, whereas the other three did not. Significant voice measures that were related to swallowing safety and/or physiology included maximum fundamental frequency (F0), F0 range, maximum phonation time, biomechanics of effortful pitch glides, and voice onset time.

Conclusions: Although there was heterogeneity in the measures used, specific objective voice measures showed promise in clinical practice as a screening tool for dysphagia. Further investigations are needed to validate the clinical utility of these measures across diverse patient populations.