OBJECTIVE ACOUSTIC EVALUATION OF VOICE CHARACTERISTICS IN RELATION TO SHARIRPRAKRITI USING THE MULTIDIMENSIONAL VOICE PROFILE MODULE: AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY

Abstract

Ayurveda places major emphasis on Sharir Prakriti as an individualized constitutional baseline. Classical texts describe characteristic voice qualities in Vata, Pitta and Kapha dominant constitutions; however, such descriptions have traditionally remained qualitative. The present manuscript converts the thesis work into a structured research paper by presenting an objective acoustic assessment of voice characteristics in relation to Dwandwaj Prakriti using the Multidimensional Voice Profile (MDVP) module. To assess whether selected MDVP parameters - fundamental frequency (F0), Jitter, Shimmer, Noise-to-Harmonic Ratio (NHR) and Soft Phonation Index (SPI) - vary across Sharir Prakriti groups and to interpret the measurable voice findings in relation to classical Ayurvedic Swar descriptions. Methods: This observational study was conducted among 33 healthy participants aged 18-24 years at Bharati Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University) College of Ayurved and the School of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology, Pune. Prakriti was assessed using the CCRAS Prakriti Parikshan portal. Voice samples were recorded using the sustained vowel /aa/ in a quiet room with a microphone placed approximately 10 cm from the mouth. The best sample from 3-5 recordings was analyzed through MDVP. Data were compared using ANOVA. Significant differences were found in F0, Jitter, Shimmer and NHR among the Prakriti groups. Vata-Pitta showed the highest F0 (253.00 +/- 6.71 Hz), Jitter (1.66 +/- 0.62%) and NHR (0.96 +/- 0.50). Vata-Kapha showed the second highest F0 (241.17 +/- 5.60 Hz), Jitter (1.06 +/- 0.55%) and NHR (0.25 +/- 0.32). Pitta-Vata demonstrated the highest Shimmer (3.20 +/- 0.28%) and SPI (18.30 +/- 5.27), while Kapha-Pitta showed the lowest F0 (162.67 +/- 36.02 Hz), Shimmer (2.04 +/- 0.23%) and NHR (0.09 +/- 0.02). SPI did not differ significantly among groups.