Voice therapy gets a makeover: new classification system tested for hoarseness
NCT ID NCT06152627
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether using a new classification system (RTSS-Voice) to document voice therapy sessions helps people with muscle tension dysphonia, a condition causing hoarseness and vocal strain. Researchers will compare outcomes from clinicians' first year using the system to their second year. 600 participants across five voice centers will be involved, with outcomes measured by patient surveys and voice recordings.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- standard of care voice therapy with RTSS-Voice documentation
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could lead to a standardized way to classify voice therapy, potentially improving treatment outcomes for people with muscle tension dysphonia.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage observational study focused on clinician documentation, not a new treatment. It may not show clear improvements, and results may not apply to all voice therapy settings.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 600 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Feb 2026
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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14 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of primary Muscle Tension Dysphonia (pMTD) * Patients with pMTD will be included regardless of subtype (e.g., functional aphonia, vocal fry, ventricular dysphonia) and they can have secondary diagnoses of reflux. Exclusion Criteria: * Patients diagnosed with pMTD will be excluded if they have secondary diagnoses related to structural, neurological, or respiratory disorders such as laryngitis, obvious vocal fold nodules, polyps, cyst, granuloma, sulci, paradoxical vocal fold motion, chronic cough, confirmed or possible upper airway paralysis/paresis, dysphagia, polypoid corditis, keratosis, presbylarynx, leukoplakia, or history of radiation to the head/neck. Patients with pMTD will be included regardless of subtype (e.g., functional aphonia, vocal fry, ventricular dysphonia) and they can have secondary diagnoses of reflux. * Non-English speakers. The RTSS-Voice's standard and operationalized categories are in English.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
5 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Emory University
RECRUITINGAtlanta, Georgia, 30322, United States
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Massachusetts General Hospital
RECRUITINGBoston, Massachusetts, 02114, United States
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New York University
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10017, United States
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University of Utah
RECRUITINGSalt Lake City, Utah, 84132, United States
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University of Wisconsin
RECRUITINGMadison, Wisconsin, 53792, United States
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