Graduated in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, School of Medicine, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais - UFMG - Belo Horizonte (MG), Brazil.
Department of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, School of Medicine, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais - UFMG - Belo Horizonte (MG), Brazil.
J Voice. 2022 Nov;36(6):808-813. doi: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2020.10.002. Epub 2020 Oct 24.
To verify the association between vocal perception and Common Mental Disorders (CMD) suspicion in trans women.
Cross-sectional observational study including 24 adult trans women with a minimum time of presentation as a woman of six months. The sampling of the subjects was supported by the "Snowball" technique. Three questionnaires were applied for data collection: sociodemographic and health data, Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) and Trans Woman Voice Questionnaire (TWVQ). The sociodemographic and health data collected were: age, marital status, education, smoking habits, speech therapy, use of hormones, and whether they had undergone Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRG). SRQ-20 was used for suspicion of CMD evaluation, such as depressive and anxiety symptoms. TWVQ is a vocal self-report questionnaire for trans women living the full-time gender role in which they self-identify. TWVQ has a minimum score of 30 points and a maximum of 120 points. Higher scores are associated with perceptions of a higher frequency of voice-related difficulties and psychosocial impacts. For statistical analysis, data were analyzed descriptively and statistically using Fisher's and Mann-Whitney's exact tests, both with a significance level of 5%.
The average participants' age in this study was 28.2 years old (SD = 6.5 / minimum = 21 and maximum = 48); 83.3% were single; most (41.7%) were high school graduates; and most (95.83%) had not undergone Sex Reassignment Surgery. All subjects reported using hormones; 37.5% were smokers; 4.2% had undergone speech therapy; and the average number of years of experience in the female role was 8.8 years (SD = 7.2). The average TWVQ score was 55.4 points (SD = 4.3). Through SRQ-20, it was verified the prevalence of suspected CMD in 58.3% of the participants. The study results indicated that communicative dissatisfaction in trans women due to inconsistent voice with the recognized gender is associated with probable CMD such as depression and anxiety (P= 0.001).
Trans women who reported greater difficulties and voice-related effects in their lives had more symptoms of anxiety and depression. Although more research is needed, results indicate the need for inter-professional preventive and therapeutic actions directed towards assisting trans women. This fact encourages reflection on the care of this population and the role of health professionals, enhancing scientific production, clinical practice and the inclusion of the "transsexuality" theme in Speech Language and Hearing Sciences.
验证变女两性人（trans women）的嗓音感知与常见精神障碍（CMD）可疑症状之间的关联。
本研究为横断面观察性研究，纳入了 24 名至少已作为女性出现 6 个月的成年变女两性人。研究对象的抽样通过“滚雪球”技术进行。为了收集数据，共使用了 3 种问卷：社会人口统计学和健康数据、自报告问卷（SRQ-20）和跨性别女性嗓音问卷（TWVQ）。收集的社会人口统计学和健康数据包括：年龄、婚姻状况、教育程度、吸烟习惯、言语治疗、激素使用情况以及是否进行过性别重置手术（SRG）。SRQ-20 用于评估 CMD 可疑症状，如抑郁和焦虑症状。TWVQ 是一份针对跨性别女性的嗓音自报告问卷，她们正在全职扮演自己认同的性别角色。TWVQ 的最低得分为 30 分，最高得分为 120 分。较高的分数与感知到更高频率的嗓音相关困难和心理社会影响相关。对于统计分析，使用 Fisher 和 Mann-Whitney 精确检验进行描述性和统计分析，均具有 5%的显著性水平。
本研究中参与者的平均年龄为 28.2 岁（标准差=6.5/最小值=21，最大值=48）；83.3%为单身；大多数（41.7%）拥有高中学历；大多数（95.83%）未进行过性别重置手术。所有受试者均报告使用激素；37.5%为吸烟者；4.2%接受过言语治疗；女性角色的平均体验年限为 8.8 年（标准差=7.2）。TWVQ 的平均得分为 55.4 分（标准差=4.3）。通过 SRQ-20，证实了 58.3%的参与者存在疑似 CMD。研究结果表明，跨女两性人由于嗓音与公认性别不一致而导致的交流不满与可能的 CMD（如抑郁和焦虑）有关（P=0.001）。
报告生活中存在更多嗓音相关困难和影响的跨女两性人，具有更多的焦虑和抑郁症状。尽管还需要进一步的研究，但结果表明需要采取跨专业的预防和治疗措施，以帮助跨女两性人。这一事实促使我们对这一人群的护理以及卫生专业人员的角色进行反思，加强科学研究、临床实践，并将“跨性别”主题纳入言语语言听力科学领域。
