Voice Disorders (Dysphonia)

What is dysphonia?

Voice change (dysphonia) can affect both children & adults and represents a change in the quality, tone or strength of a person’s voice. Voice change can be due to a structural problem in the larynx or a change in the function of the larynx. All voice changes in people who smoke, needs to be reviewed urgently.

What are the symptoms of dysphonia?

Voice change (dysphonia) can be an isolated finding but can also be associated with other ‘red flag’ symptoms such as; painful swallowing (odynophagia), difficulty swallowing (dysphagia), coughing up blood (haemoptysis), ear pain (otalgia) or unexplained weight loss. If any of these symptoms are present then urgent review is required to exclude malignancy.

How do you treat dysphonia?

A full voice/head & neck examination is required (including nasendoscopy to view the vocal cords) to identify the cause of the dysphonia. Once identified, treatment will be tailored to the patient. Treatment options can include lifestyle modification, speech therapy, medication and possibly surgery.