Speech and Hearing Science Commons^™

Respiratory Function In Transgender And Gender Diverse Individuals On Testosterone Therapy: A Comparative Study, Jillian River R. Browy, Alicia Heitzman, Deanna Britton, Jeff Conn, Karen Drake, Aaron Ziegler

Student Research Symposium

Introduction: The primary goal of this pilot study was to examine the impact of testosterone therapy, as part of medical treatment to align gender identity, on measures of respiration and voice.

Methods: Participants consisted of a group of transgender and gender-diverse individuals, assigned female at birth, who had been taking testosterone for at least one year and a control group of age- and race-matched peers, also assigned female at birth, who had never taken testosterone. Data were collected on the primary outcomes of respiratory volume and strength, reflected by measures of forced vital capacity (FVC), maximum inspiratory pressure (MIP), and …