• Speech Sciences
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.173-184
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• 2001

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of manipulating loudness and pitch in terms of speech intelligibility and voice of a patient with Parkinson's Disease. The subject, who was diagnosed as a patient with Parkinson's disease 11 years ago, demonstrated a severely breath voice with low intensity. The accuracy of articulation in consonants was intelligible only at the single word level, and the overall intelligibility in continuous speech was low. The results showed that the subject's articulation accuracy and speech intelligibility was significantly improved after having loudness and pitch training. Habitual Fo, Jitter, Shimmer, Fo tremor, Amp tremor were decreased after training. In addition, the value of HNR also increased after training. It was shown that the changes of these acoustic parameters were closely related to the decrease of breathiness in Parkinson's voice, and this decrease of breathiness affected speech intelligibility considerably. Based on the experimental results, it was claimed that the vocal training by manipulating the loudness and pitch could be highly effective in improving the voice quality and speech intelligibility in Parkinson's Disease.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.3 no.5
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• pp.685-694
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• 1998

This cross-sectional study was conducted to describe the changes of plasma cardiovascular disease(CVD) risk factors in Korea. Overnight fasting plasma levels of total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein(HDL)-cholesterol, triacylglycerol and glucose were analyzed. Blood pressure and anthropometric data were also measured. Health practice factors such as smoking status, alcohol consumption and frequency fo exercise were evaluated by a self-administered questionnaire. Questions regarding dietary habits and food preferences were also asked. Seventy eight percent of the subjects had more than one CVD risk factor. Plasma total cholesterol, triacylglycerol, and fasting blood glucose were significantly increased according to the subjects body mass index$(kg/m^2$, BMI), whereas HDL-cholesterol, low density lipoprotein(LDL)-cholesterol and blood pressure showed no significant differences with BMI. Current smokers had significantly high plasma total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and triacylglycerol levels. Alcohol consumption significantly increased plasma total cholesterol and fasting blood sugar, but regular exercise had no effects on the plasma CVD risk factors. Overeating and frequency of fast food consumption were positively correlated with the CVD risk score, whereas intake of grains, meats and vegetables were negatively correlated with that score. A stepwise multiple regression analysis was performed to examine the effects of specific dietary factors on plasma lipid levels. For plasma total cholesterol level, the frequency of fast food intake explained 8% of the variance, followed by habitual overeating, frequency of grain intake and high cholesterol food intake(Model $R^2$=22.4%). For plasma triacylglycerol level, preference of oily foods accounted for 7.5% of the variance, followed by eating breakfast, preference of fruit and frequency of grain intake(Model $R^2$=22.0%). The findings suggest that intervention programs to reduce the risk of CVD should focus on health practice through reducing BMI, smoking cessation and moderate or no alcohol drinking. Moreover, desirable dietary habits such as eating breakfast, not overeating and reduced intake of fast food may improve CVD risk.