Acoustic characteristics of fricatives, amplitude of formants and clarity of speech produced without and with a medical mask

BACKGROUND: Previous research has found that high‐frequency energy of speech signals decreased while wearing face masks. However, no study has examined the specific spectral characteristics of fricative consonants and vowels and the perception of clarity of speech in mask wearing. AIMS: To investigate acoustic–phonetic characteristics of fricative consonants and vowels and auditory perceptual rating of clarity of speech produced with and without wearing a face mask. METHODS & PROCEDURES: A total of 16 healthcare workers read the Rainbow Passage using modal phonation in three conditions: without a face mask, with a standard surgical mask and with a KN95 mask (China GB2626‐2006, a medical respirator with higher barrier level than the standard surgical mask). Speech samples were acoustically analysed for root mean square (RMS) amplitude (A (RMS)) and spectral moments of four fricatives /f/, /s/, /ʃ/ and /z/; and amplitude of the first three formants (A1, A2 and A3) measured from the reading passage and extracted vowels. Auditory perception of speech clarity was performed. Data were compared across mask and non‐mask conditions using linear mixed models. OUTCOMES & RESULTS: The A (RMS) of all included fricatives was significantly lower in surgical mask and KN95 mask compared with non‐mask condition. Centre of gravity of /f/ decreased in both surgical and KN95 mask while other spectral moments did not show systematic significant linear trends across mask conditions. None of the formant amplitude measures was statistically different across conditions. Speech clarity was significantly poorer in both surgical and KN95 mask conditions. CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS: Speech produced while wearing either a surgical mask or KN95 mask was associated with decreased fricative amplitude and poorer speech clarity. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT: Previous studies have shown that the overall spectral levels in high frequency ranges and intelligibility are decreased for speech produced with a face mask. It is unclear how different types of the speech signals that is, fricatives and vowels are presented in speech produced with wearing either a medical surgical or KN95 mask. It is also unclear whether ratings of speech clarity are similar for speech produced with these face masks. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE: Speech data collected using a real‐world, clinical and non‐laboratory‐controlled settings showed differences in the amplitude of fricatives and speech clarity ratings between non‐mask and mask‐wearing conditions. Formant amplitude did not show significant differences in mask‐wearing conditions compared with non‐mask. WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL OR ACTUAL CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS OF THIS WORK? Wearing a surgical mask or a KN95 mask had different effects on consonants and vowels. It appeared from the findings in this study that these masks only affected fricative consonants and did not affect vowel production. The poorer speech clarity in these mask‐wearing conditions has important implications for speech perception in communication between clinical staff and between medical officers and patients in clinics, and between people in everyday situations. The impact of these masks on speech perception may be more pronounced in people with hearing impairment and communication disorders. In voice evaluation and/or therapy sessions, the effects of wearing a medical mask can occur bidirectionally for both the clinician and the patient. The patient may find it more challenging to understand the speech conveyed by the clinician while the clinician may not perceptually assess patient's speech and voice accurately. Given the significant correlation between clarity ratings and fricative amplitude, improving fricative signals would be useful to improve speech clarity while wearing these medical face masks.