Biobehavioral Measures of Presbylaryngeus

Objective: The objective of this observational study was to assess the relationship between established aging biobehavioral measures and voice decline in normally aging adults. Study design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: Participants 60–85 years of age were divided into two age and sex-matched groups, based on the presence or absence of presbylaryngeus. Both groups underwent a battery of tests measuring anthropometric variables, inflammatory markers, general health measures, and vocal function parameters. Differences from the norm were calculated for all variables. Parametric and nonparametric tests were performed to assess group differences. In addition, variable selection analysis was performed to determine variables that were most influential in predicting the occurrence of presbylaryngeus in our current sample. Results: Fifty-three participants were divided into age and sex-matched groups of “presbylaryngeus” (n = 26) and “non-presbylaryngeus” (n = 27). The two groups were statistically different in select measures of inflammatory markers, general health measures, and vocal function parameters. Anthropometric measures were not statistically different. Based on variable selection, the variables most predictive of the presence of presbylaryngeus were measures of the Physical Activity Scale of the Elderly, C-reactive protein, laryngeal airway resistance, and vocal roughness. Conclusions: In addition to group differences in vocal function measures, results for the presbylaryngeus group consistently trended sub-optimally on anthropometric measures, two inflammatory markers, and general health measures. These results suggest that this sample of individuals with presbylaryngeus demonstrated greater biobehavioral deficits associated with aging as compared to age and sex-matched non-presbylaryngeus individuals.