Building on Mobile towards Better Stuttering Awareness to Improve Speech Therapy

This paper describes the project I Aware my Stuttering , which is a system with a focus on a mobile application for smartphones directed to people who stutter. This software will allow users to register their stuttering related situations, registering, for example, the contexts in which they occur, the interlocutors and their reactions to the situations, and the emotions felt. The application provides a reporting module that includes charts to help visualizing how stuttering situations evolve according to several features. It will help promote daily self-monitoring of speech as a means of controlling stuttering, being personalized according to the user profile. The system also offers a module for the speech therapist, which can monitor and receive reports related to users which are her/his patients. This collected data will improve the therapeutic process by enhancing discussion about registers performed immediately after a real context situation. Additionally, this paper presents a first user study conducted to assess and validate the project’s purpose and the central module for registration of stuttering related situations.Com o apoio RAADRI

Prevalence of vocal problems in portuguese primary and secondary shool level teachers

This study compared the prevalence of vocal problems in two Portuguese groups: 73 teachers that use their voice as professional tool (teachers’ group) and 73 non-voice professionals (control group). It also identified the risk factors that contributed to teachers’ group voice problems. A questionnaire was applied to both goups in order to obtain information about vocal health, hygiene and behavior, professional activity and general physical health. Statistical results revealed that the teachers’ group presented a higher prevalence of vocal problems than the control group: 52% reported hoarseness, 46.6% vocal fatigue and 45.2% vocal discomfort compared with 31.5%, 20.5 % e 28.7%, respectively. Environmental factors (eg., smoke and cold temperatures), vocal abuse and upper respiratory pathologies (e.g., colds, laryngitis and pharyngitis) seemed to increase teachers’ voice disorders (p-value < .05). In conclusion, the absence of vocal pedagogy in the curricular plan of teachers’ higher education associated to poor working environmental conditions and professional voice demands explained the higher prevalence of vocal problems in teachers’ group

The effects of ILFN-exposure on voice acoustic parameters of commercial cabin crewmembers

Background: Long-term exposure to infrasound and low frequency noise (ILFN <500 Hz, including infrasound) can lead to the development of vibroacoustic disease (VAD). VAD is a systemic pathology characterized by the abnormal growth of extracellular matrices in the absence of inflammatory processes, namely of collagen and elastin, both of which are abundant in the basement membrane zone of the vocal folds. ILFN-exposed workers include pilots, cabin crewmembers, restaurant workers, ship machinists and, in previous studies, even though they did not present vocal symptoms, ILFN-exposed workers had significant different voice acoustic patterns (perturbation and temporal measures) when compared with normative population. Study Aims: The present study investigates the effects of age and years of occupational ILFN-exposure on voice acoustic parameters of 37 cabin crewmembers: 12 males and 25 females. Specifically, the goals of this study are to: 1) Verify if acoustic parameters change over the age and years of ILFN-exposure and 2) Determine if there is any interaction between age and years of ILFNexposure on voice acoustic parameters of crewmembers. Materials and Methods: Spoken phonatory tasks were recorded with a C420III PP AKG head-worn microphone and a DA-P1 Tascam DAT. Acoustic analyses were performed using KayPENTAX Computer Speech Lab and Multi-Dimensional Voice Program. Acoustic parameters included speaking fundamental frequency, perturbation measures (jitter, shimmer and harmonicto- noise ratio), temporal measures (maximum phonation time and s/z ratio) and voice tremor frequency. Results: One-way ANOVA analysis revealed that as the number of ILFN-exposure years increased male cabin crewmembers presented significant different shimmer values of /i/ as well as tremor frequency of /u/. Females presented significantly different jitter % of /i, a, O/ (p <0.05). Lastly, Two-way ANOVA analysis revealed that for females, there was a significant interaction between age and occupational ILFN-exposure for voice acoustic parameters, namely for jitter’s mean for /a, O/ and shimmer’s (%) mean for /a, i/ (p <0.05). Discussion and Conclusion: These perturbation measure patterns may be indicative of histological changes within the vocal folds as a result of ILFN-exposure. The results of this study suggest that voice acoustic analysis may be an important tool for confirming ILFN-induced health effects

Voice acoustic profi le of males exposed to occupational infrasound and low-frequency noise

Background: Vibroacoustic disease (VAD) is a systematic pathology characterized by the abnormal growth of extra-cellular matrices in the absence of infl ammatory processes, namely collagen and elastin, both of which are abundant in the basement membrane zone of the vocal folds. VAD can develop due to long-term exposure to infrasound and low-frequency noise (ILFN, <500 Hz). Mendes et al. (2006, 2008 and 2012) revealed that ILFN-exposed males and females presented an increased fundamental frequency (F0), decreased jitter %, and reduced maximum phonation frequency range, when compared with normative data. Temporal measures of maximum phonation time and S/Z ratio were generally reduced. Study Aims: Herein, the same voice acoustic parameters of 48 males, 36 airline pilots and 12 cabin crewmembers (age range 25-60 years) were studied, and the effects and interaction of age and years of ILFN exposure were investigated within those parameters. ILFN-exposure time (i.e. years of professional activity) ranged from 3.5 to 36 years. Materials and Methods: Spoken and sung phonatory tasks were recorded with a DA-P1 Tascam DAT and a C420III PP AKG head-worn microphone, positioned at 3 cm from the mouth. Acoustic analyses were performed using KayPENTAX Computer Speech Lab and Multi-Dimensional Voice Program. Results: Results revealed that even though pilots and cabin crewmembers were exposed to occupational environments with distinct (ILFN-rich) acoustical frequency distributions and sound pressure levels, differences in the vocal acoustic parameters were not evident. Analyzing data from both professional groups (N = 48) revealed that F0 increased signifi cantly with the number of years of professional activity. Conclusion: These results strongly suggest that the number of years of professional activity (i.e. total ILFN exposure time) had a signifi cant effect on F0. Furthermore, they may refl ect the histological changes specifi cally observed on the vocal folds of ILFN-exposed professionals

Are Social Representations of Positive Ageing Really Effective? The ageing process through the eyes of elderly

In this paper we focused on the experiences of ageing from the perspective of elderly people. Our main aims were to explore their perceptions and representations about the ageing experience and to analyse if their conceptions are closer to positive social representations of active ageing or to ageist social assumptions. Thirty-five females (mean age of 80 years) and seven males (mean age of 73 years) participated in this study, recruited in a network of institutions run by the city council of Setubal. Data collection was conducted with structured interviews and the obtained transcriptions were submitted to qualitative thematic analysis. With this analytic approach it was possible to identify dominant themes in participants’ discourses. Results show that elderly perceive and represent the process of ageing according to a binary perspective, displaying both positive and negative dimensions. Even if the ageing experience is described according to a positive perspective, it is also anchored on ageist social constructions. Thus the positive social representations of ageing expressed through active ageing discourses are still not fully assimilated and integrated on people’s self-perceptions and identities

Ouvindo os idosos: resultados de uma rede de excelência entre a escola e a comunidade

Trabalho apresentado em Conferência Internacional sobre Enfermagem Geriátrica, outubro 2013, Lisboa, Portugalinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Formação multiprofissional: aprendizagem em contexto e tempo reais

Trabalho apresentado em Seminário de Investigação “Entre a Teoria, os Dados e o Conhecimento (II): Olhares para uma realidade”, outubro 2013, Setúbal, PortugalN/

Inter-professional education: Real time/real life learning

Trabalho apresentado em 6th International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation,18-20 Novembro de 2013, Sevilha, Espanhainfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio