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Acoustic Analysis of Snoring Sounds by a Multidimensional Voice Program
Author(s) -
Hara Hirotaka,
Murakami Naoko,
Miyauchi Yuji,
Yamashita Hiroshi
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
the laryngoscope
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.181
H-Index - 148
eISSN - 1531-4995
pISSN - 0023-852X
DOI - 10.1097/01.mlg.0000195378.08969.fd
Subject(s) - medicine , obstructive sleep apnea , polysomnography , audiology , body mass index , apnea , anesthesia
Objectives: This prospective study aimed to determine whether the acoustic characteristics of snoring sounds differed between simple snorers and patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) by using a multidimensional voice program (MDVP) that analyzes various aspects of voice. Methods: Fifty‐eight patients (48 men, 10 women) with a history of snoring were included in the study. All patients underwent conventional polysomnography (PSG). Twelve subjects were diagnosed as simple snorers and 46 subjects were diagnosed with OSAS. The mean body mass index (BMI) of simple snorers was 24.7 kg/m 2 and that of patients with OSAS was 25.8 kg/m 2 . Natural overnight snoring was recorded from each subject while they slept during PSG. Using the multiple token protocols of MDVP, 30 snores from each subject were analyzed automatically. For data analysis, four markers were used: peak frequency, soft phonation index (SPI), noise to harmonics ratio (NHR), and power ratio. Results: The Mann‐Whitney U test revealed significant differences between the SPI, NHR, and power ratio of simple snorers and patients with OSAS. Simple snorers had a high SPI value. OSAS‐related snorers demonstrated a high NHR and low power ratio. Conclusions: MDVP can be used for snoring sound analysis as a noninvasive examination of sleep‐related breathing disorders for differential diagnosis. However, a suitable option that is rapid and has an easy‐to‐use interface would be more advantageous for analyzing snoring sounds.