Reliability of computerized measurements of glottal insufficiency

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of computerized measurements of glottal parameters from videostroboscopic examinations. Ten patients with glottal insufficiency of different etiology received collagen injections. Measurements of vocal fold length, glottal area and amplitude of the vocal fold vibrations were obtained before and after injection. Repeat measurements from 43% of randomly chosen frames showed a high consistency for the parameters vocal fold length (r=0.984) minimum glottal area (r=0.967), and glottal area variation (r=0.987). Consistency of vibration amplitude was lower (r=0.795). This study shows that computerized measurements are suitable tools in the evaluation of vocal fold injection treatment for glottal insufficiency.