Summary
Objective
This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to estimate the prevalence of voice
disorders and related factors in university professors.
Methods
In this systematic review, Medline, Scopus, Embase, Cochrane Library, Eric, ProQuest,
Magiran, Scientific Information Database and IranDoc databases were searched. The
search was limited to January 1990 and May 2020. The inclusion criteria were reports
of the prevalence of voice disorders in university professors and original studies
in English and Persian languages. The exclusion criteria were studies assessing voice
disorders in school or music teachers; the full-text not available; and case studies,
conference papers, and review studies. All eligible studies were selected and critically
appraised using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist. Finally, a meta-analysis was
performed using STATA 16.0 statistical software.
Results
The preliminary search yielded 1251 articles and 18 of which met the eligibility criteria.
The overall prevalence of voice disorders in university professors was 41% (Pooled
prevalence: 0.41, 95% CI: 0.34-0.49, P-value < 0.001). Country-based analysis showed that the highest prevalence of voice
disorders among university professors was in Iran 69% (Pooled prevalence: 0.69, 95%
CI: 0.62-0.76) and the lowest was in China 20% (Pooled prevalence: 0.20, CI: 0.14-0.27).
Among 4037 university professors, caffeine consumption was the most frequent related
factor (87%) and dry throat was the most frequent symptom (46%).
Conclusions
The present study yielded about 41% of the professors had voice disorders. Among the
influential habits, caffeine consumption and among the symptoms, dry throat were very
common in university professors. Due to the cross-sectional nature of our studies,
we were not able to perform further analyses on the risk factors for voice disorders.
Therefore, more longitudinal surveys are needed for reaching a more reliable and deep
view into the development of voice disorders.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 11, 2022
Accepted:
February 15,
2022
Publication stage
In Press Corrected ProofIdentification
Copyright
© 2022 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
