Foundations for Prescribing Song-Based Therapies: A Quantitative Comparison of Laryngeal Exercises (SINGS)

May 12, 2026 updated by: University of Kansas Medical Center
SINGS explores the therapeutic potential of song-based exercises for treating dysphagia in geriatric populations. The project aims to compare the effectiveness of song-based tasks with traditional speech-language pathology (SLP) exercises using advanced tools such as surface electromyography (sEMG) and functional neuroimaging. In addition to quantifying functional activity during therapy, the study will assess patient compliance, satisfaction, and long-term swallowing outcomes, with a focus on improving quality of life through innovative, enjoyable therapies.

Study Overview

Status

Withdrawn

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Healthy Adults

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of head and neck cancer, radiation to the neck, and/or other head and neck based surgeries*

  • Formal Dysphagia diagnosis*

    • Formal GERD diagnosis*
    • Adults unable to consent
    • Individuals who are not yet adults (infants, children, teenagers)
    • Prisoners

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Healthy cohort without prescribed dysphagia
This cohort of healthy individuals will help establish mechanisms of therapy protocols to apply in future studies on target population.
Other: Dysphagia Treatment Protocol
The SINGS arm will be completed by all members in the cohort.
Other Names:
  • SINGS
Experimental: SINGS Intervention
The SINGS arm will be completed by all members in the cohort.
Other: Dysphagia Treatment Protocol
The SINGS arm will be completed by all members in the cohort.
Other Names:
  • SINGS

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Muscle Activation
Time Frame: Day 1 (single 90-minute study visit)
Surface EMG readings between SBT and SLP tasks.
Day 1 (single 90-minute study visit)
EEG
Time Frame: Day 1 (single 90-minute study visit)
Similar regional neural activity measured by EEG between SBT and SLP tasks.
Day 1 (single 90-minute study visit)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
EAT-10 Total Score
Time Frame: Day 1 (single study visit)
Total score on the Eating Assessment Tool (EAT-10) questionnaire
Day 1 (single study visit)
Self-reported tobacco and e-cigarette use
Time Frame: Day 1 (single study visit); assesses past 30 days and lifetime history as applicable
Self-reported tobacco and e-cigarette use variables (e.g., days used in past 30 days; cigarettes per day; quit attempts; age of initiation)
Day 1 (single study visit); assesses past 30 days and lifetime history as applicable
Patient Satisfaction Survey
Time Frame: Day 1 (single study visit)
Likert-scale responses (1-5) on satisfaction, convenience, enjoyment, ease, and confidence comparing song-based tasks to SLP tasks
Day 1 (single study visit)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Kansas Medical Center

Collaborators

National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Jennifer Villwock, MD, University of Kansas Medical Center

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

June 1, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

October 15, 2025

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 15, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 20, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 12, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

May 19, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 19, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 12, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • SINGS TL1
  • TL1TR002368 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

IPD Plan Description

It is not yet known if there will be a plan to make IPD available.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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