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Glossary
Note: Within a definition, words in italics are defined elsewhere in the glossary. Words beginning with * were coined or brought into the language of voice disorders by Dr. Bastian, or to our knowledge are used primarily by BVI physicians and Bastian-trained fellows. Please note that we may be adding terms to this list from time to time. Copyright © 2008 Bastian Voice Institute.
Recurrent laryngeal
nerve: A branch of the vagus nerve that supplies
nerve fibers for movement and sensation of the vocal folds.
This nerve follows a long course descending from the base
of the skull into the chest, where it loops around the aorta
(left side) or the subclavian artery (right side), then ascends
again in the neck, running posterior to the thyroid gland
before entering the larynx. Injury to the nerve at any point
along its course may lead to vocal
fold paralysis.
Recurrent respiratory
papillomatosis (RRP): A term denoting growth
of wart-like or velvety lesions of the vocal folds, or other
areas such as the supraglottic
larynx or even tracheobronchial tree, caused by chronic infection
with the human papilloma virus
(HPV).
*Reductionistic diagnostic
model: Term used somewhat interchangeably with
the technology-driven diagnostic model.
Reductionism is a theory that all complex systems can be completely
understood in terms of their components. Applied to voice
disorders, this would suggest that we can understand every
voice disorder if we can only make enough measures of various
sorts. By extension, proponents of the reductionistic diagnostic
model might suggest that if we do not understand a voice disorder
completely by the end of a comprehensive set of measures,
we need more measures! This model for voice disorder evaluation
might be viewed in competition with the integrative
diagnostic model used at Bastian Voice Institute.
See also [BVI’s diagnostic
model/method for voice disorders].
Reinke’s edema:
See polypoid degeneration.
Respiratory dystonia:
A syndrome caused by laryngeal dystonia
in which the disorder affects the breathing side along with,
or instead of, the phonatory side of the larynx’s function.
Afflicted individuals may have difficulty inhaling air through
a glottis closed by adductory
spasms, or may be able to inhale without difficulty but then
to find it hard to breathe out, as the victim of involuntary
breath-holding.
RevoLix laser: A diode
pumped solid state laser made by LisaLaser of Germany, with
a wavelength of approximately 2 microns. This is a very recent
addition to the armamentarium of laryngology, because it allows
laser energy to be delivered via a solid glass fiber. This
enables use of the laser with flexible endoscopes while the
patient sits in a chair, rather than requiring general anesthesia
and an operating room. To our knowledge, Bastian Voice Institute
acquired the second RevoLix laser for laryngological use in
the U.S.
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