Perceptual rating scales are widely used in voice quality assessment, yet apart from the GRBAS scale, their reliability has been poorly demonstrated. There are no studies that have compared the optimal reliability of experienced judges using different auditory rating scales in a controlled experimental environment. This study aimed to assess the reliability of three common scales (The Buffalo Voice Profile, The Vocal Profile Analysis Scheme (VPA) and GRBAS. Sixty-five varyingly dysphonic and five normal voices were recorded onto CD in random order. Thirty voices were recorded twice. Seven experienced and trained speech and language therapists rated all voices on the three scales. Only the overall grade was found to be reliable for the Buffalo Voice Profile. The reliability of the VPA scheme was found to be poor to moderate. The VPA may have a use as a multi-dimensional and in-depth evaluation of voice types, but its greater scope is at the expense of reliability. The GRBAS was reliable across all parameters except Strain. Our detailed reliability analysis comparing performance of three commonly used rating scales provides further evidence to support the GRBAS as a simple reliable measure for clinical use.

Self report measures of voice function are in frequent use, but have had inadequate psychometric evaluation. We aimed to perform a substantial factor analysis of two measures of voice impairment, the Voice Symptom Scale (VoiSS) and the Voice Handicap Index (VHI). Both the 30-item questionnaires were completed by 319 dysphonic voice clinic attenders (99M, 220F). Principal components analysis confirmed that both instruments reflected general voice abnormality. The VoiSS comprised three factors - impairment (15 items), emotional (8 items) and related physical symptoms (7 items) - each with a good internal consistency. Analysis of the VHI suggested that it contains only two subscales. When a three-factor solution was imposed on the data, analysis failed to support the currently advised three 10-item subscale interpretations. Instead, we found a physical (voice impairment) domain (8 items), a psychosocial domain (14 items) and a factor with 8 items related to difficulty in being heard. The VHI requires further statistical refinement to identify its subscale structure. The VoiSS was developed from 800 subjects and is psychometrically the most robust and extensively validated self report voice measure available.

The majority of the world population is now inhabiting urban areas, and with staggering population growth, urbanization is also increasing. While the work studying the effects of changing landscapes and specific urban pressures on wildlife is beginning to amass, the majority of this work focuses on avian or mammalian species. However, the effects of urbanization likely vary substantially across taxonomic groups due to differences in habitat requirements and life history. The current article aims first to broaden the review of urban effects across reptilian species; second, to summarize the responses of reptilian fauna to specific urban features; and third, to assess the directionality of individual and population level responses to urbanization in reptile species. Based on our findings, urban research in reptilian taxa is lacking in the following areas: (1) investigating interactive or additive urban factors, (2) measuring multiple morphological, behavioral, and physiological endpoints within an animal, (3) linking individual to population-level responses, and (4) testing genetic/genomic differences across an urban environment as evidence for selective pressures.

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The total VHI-10 or VPQ score is a good overall indicator of the severity of voice disorders.