Talking to your best friend on the phone, making small-talk when out or singing in the church choir - these everyday activities suddenly become impossible, without a strong voice. There are various causes for this condition, including paralysis of the vocal folds, consequences of surgery or age-related tissue degradation. The consequences can be a hoarse, brittle, smoky or croaky sounding voice as well as shortness of breath.
In many cases, minimally invasive surgery can significantly improve this condition. The aim is the gentle, long-term, restoration of the natural voice. A new method of autologous fat removal, processing and injection is achieving impressive, sustainable results - without the use of synthetic substances.
Vocal folds closed Unilateral vocal cord paralysis
Source: MEDICAL VOICE CENTER, Hamburg, Germany
Who is affected by long-term voice loss?
Both men and women suffer from voice loss. Typically, in men the voice suddenly changes and becomes reedy and high-pitched, whereby women´s voices tend to sound deeper. The consequences, on the other hand, are similar. Those affected often withdraw into social isolation when their physical and mental suffering worsens. As in the case of age-related hearing loss, health insurance companies regard this to be a medical indication worthy of treatment, and cover the costs, when prescribed by a specialist.
Ask your doctor
As a symptom, hoarseness occurs in almost all voice disorders. It medically describes the altered or absent vibration of the vocal folds. If hoarseness persists for more than three weeks, pain-free and without typical symptoms of a cold, an ENT physician or phoniatrician should be consulted. Both a medication and an environmental anamnesis should be completed to rule out possible causes. If organic change is detected, it must be determined whether surgery is necessary or whether conservative measures, such as voice therapy, are sufficient. Should this not be the case, or if such a therapy was already unsuccessful, a minimally invasive surgical procedure can alleviate the symptoms.
Laryngoscopy - a painless initial examination
A voice disorder is immediately, clearly audible to a specialist. However, a laryngoscopy provides a reliable, initial diagnosis. During this procedure, the doctor can use a rigid or a flexible scope to examine the patient´s throat via either the mouth or nose, in order to determine the cause of the symptoms. Based on these examination results, a decision is made as to which treatment is most appropriate.
