Voice Disorders

Treatment

Depending on your diagnosis, Mayo Clinic doctors will recommend one or more treatments:

• Rest, liquids and voice therapy. Like any other part of the body, the vocal cords need regular rest and fluids. Mayo Clinic speech pathology specialists can teach you how to use and rest your voice, how to properly clear your throat, and how much liquid to drink.
• Allergy treatments. If an allergy is creating too much mucus in your throat, Mayo allergists can identify the allergy's cause and provide treatment.
• Smoking cessation. If your voice problem is the result of smoking, the Mayo Clinic Nicotine Dependence Center offers programs to help address tobacco use.
• Medications. Several medications are available for treating voice disorders. They can be taken orally, injected into the vocal cords or applied topically during surgery.

Surgery

Surgery may be recommended for a number of voice conditions.

• Removal of lesions. Noncancerous lesions (polyps, nodules and cysts) on the vocal cords can form after months or years of voice misuse. Sometimes they occur in combination with respiratory infections. They may need to be surgically removed. Doctors at Mayo Clinic remove noncancerous, precancerous and cancerous lesions — including recurrent respiratory papillomatosis and white patches (leukoplakia) — using microsurgery, carbon dioxide laser surgery, and when appropriate, the newest laser treatments such as potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) laser.
• Muscle spasms. Botox injections can decrease muscle spasms or abnormal movements for people who have a neurological movement disorder that affects the vocal muscles of the larynx (spasmodic dysphonia). Tiny amounts of purified botulinum toxin relax muscles for up to five months.

Vocal cord paralysis

Open vocal cords

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Sometimes one vocal cord may stop moving (become paralyzed). People with one paralyzed vocal cord often complain of hoarseness. They may also complain of choking when they drink liquids, but they rarely have trouble swallowing solid foods. Sometimes the problem goes away with time. If not, one of two procedures can be used to push the paralyzed vocal cord closer to the middle of the windpipe so that the vocal cords can meet. This improves the voice and allows the larynx to close when you swallow. Treatments include:

• Injection. Body fat or collagen (a synthetic material) is injected to add bulk to the paralyzed vocal cord, either through your mouth or the skin on your neck. The material fills the vocal cord and pushes it to the middle. Injection is done in the office or operating room. Injection is also used to treat vocal cord weakness.
• Thyroplasty (surgery). A small opening is created in the cartilage from the outside of your voice box. The doctor inserts a piece of solid silicone through the opening and pushes it against the paralyzed vocal cord, moving the vocal cord to the middle.

Read more about vocal cord paralysis treatment at MayoClinc.com.