Effects of Injection Laryngoplasty with Hyaluronic Acid in Patients with Vocal Fold Paralysis

• Main Authors: Geun-Hyo Kim, Jae-Seok Lee, Chang-Yoon Lee, Yeon-Woo Lee, In-Ho Bae, Hee-June Park, Byung-Joo Lee, Soon-Bok Kwon
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea Centers for Disease Control & Prevention 2018-12-01
• Series: Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives
• Subjects: hyaluronic acid; laryngoplasty; paralysis; vocal fold
• Online Access: http://ophrp.org/upload/phrp-9-6/ophrp-09-354.pdf

Objectives The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of injection laryngoplasty (IL) with hyaluronic acid in patients with vocal fold paralysis (VFP). Methods A total of 50 patients with VFP participated in this study. Pre- and post-IL assessments were performed, which included analyzing the sustained vowel /a/ phonation, and the patient reading 1 Korean sentence from the “Walk” passage that comprised 25 syllables in 10 words. To investigate the effect of IL on vocal fold function, acoustic analysis (acoustic voice quality index, cepstral peak prominence, maximum phonation time, speaking fundamental frequency) was conducted and auditory-perceptual (grade and overall severity), visual judgment (gap), and self-questionnaire (voice handicap index-10) assessments were performed. Results The patients with VFP showed statistically significant differences between pre-and post-IL assessments for acoustic and auditory-perception, visual judgment, and self-questionnaire assessments. Conclusion The patients with VFP showed positive change in vocal fold function between pre- and post-IL measurements. The findings showed that IL with hyaluronic acid is an effective method to improve vocal fold function in patients with VFP.