Vocal fold atrophy, sulcus and aging voice

The vocal cord atrophy, sulcus and aging voice (presbyphonia) are different conditions that all result to a breathy voice ; because the vocal folds can not cole ompletely.

However all three of these conditions can be treated throgh the following procedures:

Intra-vocal fold Injection

This procedure, which involves injecting some substances such as hyaluronic acid into atrophic vocal folds, is effective in obtaining a clear voice. This method is performed using the same procedure as described in vocal foldd paralysis page. The advantage of this procedure is that it is quick and it can be easily performed at the clinic. The disadvantage is that the this is a temporaly solution because the injection effect only last 2-6 months. This means that the patients will have to go through this procedure 2-3 times a year.

Thyroplasty type I

After making a small window on the thyroid cartilage, artificial substance ( Gore Tex or silicon)is placed into the vocal fold. An external neck incision is necessary, but the surgery is conducted under local anesthesia, which allows the doctor to listen to patient's voice in order to achieve the best possible results.

Surgery lasts approximately 60 min and can be done withn the day. The effect is permanent. For further information, please see the "vocal cord paralysis" page.

Rehabilitation

As the vocal fold mainly consists of muscles like the other muscles of the body, they will degrade with age and due to lack of use. Although positive improvement can be expected if the voice is properly used, training is essential. The vocal fold muscles can be trained through an exercise regimen, similar to a fitness regimen at the gym, but involving vocal exercises, which may be as simple as singing a song. Our clinic offers safe and effective voice rehabilitation with our experienced and well trained certified SLPs (speech language pathologists )