Skip to main content

Automated Speech Analysis Correlates With Hepatic Encephalopathy Tests

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Oct 8, 2024.

via HealthDay

TUESDAY, Oct. 8, 2024 -- Automated speech analysis correlates with validated hepatic encephalopathy (HE) tests and may predict future overt HE, according to a study published online Sept. 12 in Hepatology.

In a two-center prospective cohort study, Patricia P. Bloom, M.D., from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues examined whether analysis of speech patterns using a modern speech platform correlates with validated HE tests, correlates with minimal HE, and can predict future overt HE. Data were included for 200 outpatients with cirrhosis and 50 control patients; patients underwent baseline speech recording and validated HE diagnostic testing with a psychometric HE score (PHES). Patients were followed for six months.

An automated speech analysis platform was used to extract 752 speech variables. The researchers observed significant associations for more than 100 speech variables with PHES. For predicting minimal HE, a three-variable model (two acoustic and one speech tempo variable) was similar to the animal naming test (area under the curve [AUC], 0.76 versus 0.69). The accuracy of the speech model was improved by adding age and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease-Sodium score (AUC, 0.82). Time to overt HE was predicted by a combined clinical speech model, with a concordance of 0.74.

"Future research will be necessary to validate this model in larger studies in different clinical settings and to determine whether changes in speech during follow-up can detect early overt HE allowing for timely interventions to prevent hospital admissions," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

ENDO: Sweeteners, Genetic Predisposition Independently Linked to Early Puberty

TUESDAY, July 15, 2025 -- Sweetener consumption and genetic predisposition are independently associated with the risk for central precocious puberty (CPP), according to a study...

Diagnostic Model Based on Delayed Post-Gadolinium Enhancement MRI Accurate for Meniere Disease

TUESDAY, July 15, 2025 -- A diagnostic model based on delayed post-gadolinium enhancement magnetic resonance imaging (DEMRI) improves the accuracy of Meniere disease (MD)...

Atopic Dermatitis May Be Linked to Increased Risk for CKD

TUESDAY, July 15, 2025 -- Atopic dermatitis (AD) was associated with an increased risk for chronic kidney disease (CKD) in an Asian population, according to a study published...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.