Outcomes of Gender-Affirming Voice and Communication Modification for Transgender Individuals

Objectives Transgender individuals' voices are closely related to gender identity. A primary goal of gender-affirming voice modification is to help individuals alter their voices to improve gender congruence; however, there is a paucity of research to support this approach. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of a 12-week gender-affirming voice and communication modification program. Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Methods A retrospective consecutive case series of transgender women enrolled in a voice and communication modification program was performed. Demographics, Trans Woman Voice Questionnaire (TWVQ), fundamental frequency (F-0), and frequency range were collected before and after the program. A Wilcoxon signed-rank test assessed changes in outcomes. Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficients quantified associations between self-reported outcomes and acoustic measures. Results A total of 16 trans women individuals were enrolled. The mean age was 31.5 years. After program completion, TWVQ improved 20.4 points, F-0 increased 26.5 Hz (spontaneous speech) and 25.7 Hz (reading), and the range increased 24.7 Hz (spontaneous speech) and 0.1 Hz (reading). None of the changes in acoustic measures significantly correlated with improvement in TWVQ scores in the cohort. Conclusion Trans women experience improvements in self-reported outcomes and changes in acoustic measures after completing a gender-affirming voice and communication modification program. Individuals may experience significant improvement in subjective outcomes despite small changes in acoustic measures and vice versa. Level of Evidence Level 4 (case series) Laryngoscope, 2021