Clinical Measurement of Fundamental Frequency in Normal and Dysphonic Voices Using Electronic Tuners

The purpose of this study was to determine whether fundamental frequency measurements made with two portable electronic tuners, relatively inexpensive devices used by musicians for fast-tuning their instruments, were comparable to those made with the Visi-Pitch (Model 6097)' when analyzing both normal and dysphonic voices. Voice recordings of vowel prolongations and connected speech (oral reading) of 40 adult subjects (10 normal females, 10 dysphonic females, 10 normal males, 10 dysphonic males) were analyzed. Results indicated that measurements of connected speech samples made with the tuners correlated very highly with those made by the Visi-Pitch. The measurements of vowel samples made with the tuners also correlated very highly with those made with the Visi-Pitch with the exception of the dysphonic female voices. Measurement differences of approximately one octave for two severely dysphonic female voices contributed to the lower but nevertheless significant correlations for dysphonic female voices. Regression analyses indicated that the tuners underestimated the measurements made with the Visi-Pitch by approximately 4 Hz or less. The results support the use of the tuners for clinical measurement of fundamental frequency when more sophisticated equipment is unavailable and when users are aware of the devices' limitations.

Key Words: voice, fundamental frequency, measurement

Submitted on February 16, 1993
Accepted on March 15, 1994

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