Dysphonia in School Teachers: An Occupational Risk Concern?

Autor: Menon UK; ENT, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University, Kochi, Kerala, India. Electronic address: unnikrishnanmenon@medical.aims.amrita.edu., Pullambalavan S; Dr Shajid's Advanced ENT, Head & Neck Centre, Manjeri, Kerala, India., Menon JR; ENT, Dr. Jayakumar's Laryngology Group, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India., Kumar P; ENT, Baby Memorial Hospital, Kannur, Kerala, India., Cherayakattu P; ENT, Almas Hospital, Kottakkal, Kerala, India., Thankappan SKP; ENT, Meitra Hospital, Kozhikode, Kerala, India., Thayyil Valappil S; Biostatistics, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Kochi, Kerala, India.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice Foundation [J Voice] 2024 Oct 19. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Oct 19.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2024.09.001
Abstrakt: Background: School teachers are known to be at risk for dysphonia. However, they do not always get the benefits that are guaranteed to people with occupational diseases. Objective parameters attempting to quantify the condition are a requirement. Based on an earlier smaller study done in a single district of Kerala, a highly literate State in south India, the present study was envisaged as a Statewide survey of the problem.
Objectives: The aim was to check the possibility of designating voice problem (dysphonia) in school teachers as a distinct occupational health issue. The primary objective was to document the prevalence of subjective dysphonia. Second, the study sought to look for possible associations between known risk factors and dysphonia.
Methods: A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based survey was conducted. The tool was developed from an earlier version, with the addition of risk factor questions and subjective handicap scoring. Three categories of dysphonia were obtained. Statistical analyses were done for all variables, with P value <0.05 considered statistically significant. Odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence limits were calculated for four of the risk factors.
Results: Completed responses were obtained from 4014 school teachers. Of these, 1885 (46.96%) had dysphonia at the time of responding, 1922 (47.88%) in the last 1year, and 2650 (66.02%) at some point during their career. Most risk factors had statistically significant association with dysphonia. OR calculation showed greater risk for teachers in government-managed or -aided schools, those teaching in secondary (5th- to 12th-grade) schools, those in the job for more than 20years, and teaching social science subject.
Conclusions: There is a high prevalence of dysphonia in school teachers in a Statewide survey of Kerala. Several risk factors have been identified, some peculiar to the region. There is enough numerical evidence to designate dysphonia in school teachers as an occupational health issue.
Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships that may be considered as potential competing interests: Unnikrishnan Menon reports administrative support was provided by Association of Otolaryngologists of India Kerala chapter. First author was also the first author of a similar study on a smaller scale, which was published in Journal of Voice in 2019. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
(Copyright © 2024 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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