What is the threshold of pathology for jitter expressed as a percentage?

• A. 0.5%
• B. 1.040%
• C. 2.5%
• D. 3.810%

Answer: (B)

Jitter reflects how much the pitch period varies from one cycle to the next during sustained vocalization. In healthy voices, these cycles are quite regular, so jitter stays low. The threshold used in many clinical references is about 1.04%, because normal voices typically fall below roughly 1% and values around 1.04% cross into what researchers and clinicians consider abnormal, indicating possible voice pathology. Lower values like 0.5% are generally within normal limits, while higher figures such as 2.5% or 3.81% suggest more pronounced irregularity associated with stronger or more obvious dysfunction. So the 1.04% level is the best balance point that flags potential pathology without being misled by normal variation.