The study succeeded in defining objective parameters for analyzing endoscopic high-speed videos and suggesting first parameters for differentiation between healthy dynamics and dynamics of organic pathologies.

Sentence repetition and short-term memory provide information on language comprehension and grammar abilities in language-impaired mono- and bilingual children and confirm their function as SLI markers.

Standard laryngoscopic imaging techniques provide only limited two-dimensional insights into the vocal fold vibrations not taking the vertical component into account. However, previous experiments have shown a significant vertical component in the vibration of the vocal folds. We present a 3D reconstruction of the entire superior vocal fold surface from 2D high-speed videoendoscopy via stereo triangulation. In a typical camera-laser set-up the structured laser light pattern is projected on the vocal folds and captured at 4000 fps. The measuring device is suitable for in vivo application since the external dimensions of the miniaturized set-up barely exceed the size of a standard rigid laryngoscope. We provide a conservative estimate on the resulting resolution based on the hardware components and point out the possibilities and limitations of the miniaturized camera-laser set-up. In addition to the 3D vocal fold surface, we extended previous approaches with a G2-continuous model of the vocal fold edge. The clinical applicability was successfully established by the reconstruction of visual data acquired from 2D in vivo high-speed recordings of a female and a male subject. We present extracted dynamic parameters like maximum amplitude and velocity in the vertical direction. The additional vertical component reveals deeper insights into the vibratory dynamics of the vocal folds by means of a non-invasive method. The successful miniaturization allows for in vivo application giving access to the most realistic model available and hence enables a comprehensive understanding of the human phonation process.

The results suggest that for males, the differences between healthy voices and organic voice disorders may be more pronounced within temporal characteristics that cannot be visually detected without high-speed imaging.

No abstract

4. Laryngoscope, 128:2367-2374, 2018.

No abstract

The human voice originates from oscillations of the vocal folds in the larynx. The duration of the voice onset (VO), called the voice onset time (VOT), is currently under investigation as a clinical indicator for correct laryngeal functionality. Different analytical approaches for computing the VOT based on endoscopic imaging were compared to determine the most reliable method to quantify automatically the transient vocal fold oscillations during VO. Transnasal endoscopic imaging in combination with a high-speed camera (8000 fps) was applied to visualize the phonation onset process. Two different definitions of VO interval were investigated. Six analytical functions were tested that approximate the envelope of the filtered or unfiltered glottal area waveform (GAW) during phonation onset. A total of 126 recordings from nine healthy males and 210 recordings from 15 healthy females were evaluated. Three criteria were analyzed to determine the most appropriate computation approach: (1) reliability of the fit function for a correct approximation of VO; (2) consistency represented by the standard deviation of VOT; and (3) accuracy of the approximation of VO. The results suggest the computation of VOT by a fourth-order polynomial approximation in the interval between 32.2 and 67.8% of the saturation amplitude of the filtered GAW.