Sep 4, 2026
Voice disorder may be an early sign of dementia, study suggests
edited by Sadie Harley, reviewed by Robert Egan
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain
Those experiencing worsening voice quality—in pitch, clarity, volume, reduced vocal range or other voice disorders—and no hearing loss may be at 58% greater risk of cognitive impairment or dementia than those who are not experiencing a voice disorder, according to the first large-scale study of diagnosed voice disorders and cognitive decline.
The findings, which suggest that voice disorders may be a more accurate early sign of cognitive decline than hearing loss alone, were recently published in the Journal of Voice by researchers at Drexel University’s College of Medicine.
Roughly 17.9 million U.S. adults report having had a voice problem within the past 12 months, and 9.4 million of them have had an issue that lasted for a week or longer, according to the National Institutes of Health. The findings from the Drexel study are particularly important for the 4 in 10 adults who experienced a voice disorder and did not pursue medical care (and may be at higher risk of cognitive decline).
More than six million Americans have Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia, a number that is expected to more than double by 2060, according to the National Institutes of Health.
The findings from the Drexel research are also relevant to the more than four in 10 Americans older than 55 who will receive a dementia diagnosis in their lifetime. Early diagnosis empowers a patient to develop more robust plans for managing finances and preparing for future health issues to ensure the best possible quality of life.
How the team compared risks
“If you have a voice disorder that impacts how your voice sounds or if it’s painful when you attempt to talk or sing, it’s only natural to participate less often in brain-supporting social or other engaging activities,” said senior author Robert Sataloff, MD, a professor and chair at Drexel’s College of Medicine. “We already see this in patients with Parkinson’s disease, in which voice disorders often precede other physical signs of the disease.”
The research team tracked data on 833,417 patients during primary care well visits, beginning at least a full year following a diagnosis of a voice or hearing loss disorder. The team compared patients with diagnosed voice disorders and a patient control group that did not experience voice or hearing problems to see who went on to develop dementia or cognitive impairment.
The team found a stronger association between cognitive decline and voice disorders than between cognitive decline and hearing loss among those with no voice disorders.
The findings challenge hearing loss as the prevailing focus for diagnosing cognitive decline. At the same time, the data in the study did not contradict earlier studies linking hearing loss and dementia.
Rest of the article:
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-voice-disorder-early-dementia.html