Risk Factors and Effects of Voice Problems for Teachers

The objective of this study was to investigate risk factors of voice problems for teachers with voice disorders as compared to teachers without voice disorders. Many studies have reported risk factors and effects of teachers' voice problems from different professions. Few researchers have investigated these phenomena among people of the same occupation. The purposes of the study are (1) to investigate risk factors of voice problems for Taiwanese teachers with voice disorders as compared to teachers without voice disorders; and (2) to investigate effects of voice problems on daily life in the two groups. A prospective study was designed for this research. One hundred and seventeen questionnaires were collected from schoolteachers. The subjects were divided into a voice disorder group (VD group) and a no voice disorder group (NVD group) from questionnaires. The Chi-square test was used to examine the significant differences of VD and NVD groups in demographic characteristics, living habits, teaching characteristics, health condition, voice symptoms, physical discomfort, and daily life. Logistic regression was used to find risk factors and effects of voice problems for teachers. Subjects in the VD group were at significantly higher risk of using a loud voice in teaching than the subjects in the NVD group. Subjects in the VD group had significantly greater effects in changing overall job opinions, reduction of overall communicative ability, decreasing phone calls, reduction of overall social ability, influence on overall emotional state, and the frequency of being upset than subjects in the NVD group. These results imply the need for a preventive voice care program for teachers.