Laryngeal Vibro-tactile Stimulation as a Non-invasive Symptomatic Treatment for Spasmodic Dysphonia

University of Minnesota

Overview

The general aim of the research is to provide scientific evidence that vibro-tactile stimulation (VTS) represents a non-invasive form of neuromodulation that can induce measurable improvements in the speech of patients with laryngeal dystonia (LD) - also called spasmodic dysphonia (SD).

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Conditions

Adductor Spasmodic Dysphonia Abductor Spastic Dysphonia Laryngeal Dystonia

Interventions

vibro-tactile stimulation (VTS)DEVICE

To apply vibro-tactile stimulation, participants will use a wearable device. It contains two vibratory motors (Precision MicrodrivesTM, Model 307 - 100) that are low-voltage (\~1V), non-invasive and will be located approximately above the lateral portions of the thyroid cartilage. For this protocol, they vibrate at frequencies between 40 - 100 Hz (i.e., 100 times per second

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * 18 years of age or older * Confirmed diagnosis of adductor or abductor LD for a minimum of 6 months. Exclusion Criteria: * Regular intake of benzodiazepines * Cognitive impairment: score \< 27 on the Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE). * Identify with a neurological or musculoskeletal impairment affecting speech motor function. These impairments may include a form of: Dyskinesia, Dystonia other than LD, Essential Tremor, Huntington's Disease, Multiple System Atrophy, Muscle Tension Dysphonia, Parkinsonism, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Spasticity, Intracranial Neoplasm (brain tumor), Spinal Neoplasm, Cerebrovascular Accident (Stroke), Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, Intracranial Hemorrhage, Multiple Sclerosis. * Non-English speaker. We will not enroll people who cannot speak English, because the voice assessment procedures (Test sentences, CAPE\_V clinical rating) have only been validated for English speakers at this point. * Pregnant people. We will not enroll pregnant people as the device used in this study is investigational.

Locations (1)

University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change in perceived speech effort (PSE)

Speaker will assess effort themselves and assign an score (range: 0-10 with a score of '10' indicating most severe effort)

Time frame: 24 months

Change in smoothed cepstral peak prominence (CPPS)

CPPS provides a measure of the strength of the fundamental frequency within background aperiodicity (physical unit is dB)

Time frame: 24 months

Change in speech quality vector (SQV) (%)

A derived measure designed to understand if a participant's voice symptom improvement occurs across objective (CPPS) and subjective measures of speech (PSE). It is based on the relative change between two time points

Time frame: 24 months

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.