| New
York times article spotlights bvi
The New York Times did a feature
story following the lead of one of Dr. Richardson’s
happy patients titled Quick Fixes to Bring Back Damaged
Voices. This article focuses on a technique that temporarily
repairs the weak, whispery voice that results from vocal
fold paralysis while waiting for recovery of the nerve
supplying the vocal fold. Vocal fold paralysis is due to injury
of this nerve as a result of viral attack, endotracheal
intubation (rarely), neck/ chest surgery (such as for
thyroid, spine, esophagus, or lung disorders), and certain
cancers. In many places, an individual must wait (and struggle
vocally) 9-12 months before a permanent, surgical repair of
vocal fold paralysis is performed, because nerve function
can take up to a year to return after the onset of the paralysis.
Based upon Dr. Bastian’s pioneering work in indirect
procedures in the voicebox and throat, Drs. Bastian and Richardson
offer an early, though temporary solution to this problem
in the videoendoscopy procedure room of BVI: a slowly-absorbed
gel or paste is injected into the paralyzed vocal fold to
“plump it up” (injection
laryngoplasty). This allows the paralyzed fold to serve
as a better partner to the other, non-paralyzed fold for a
period of many weeks to months, so that the patient achieves
a much better voice while awaiting recovery of the injured
nerve. BVI physicians perform many such vocal fold injections
each year.
To see the New York Times story,
click on the following link:
Quick
Fixes to Bring Back Damaged Voices.
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