Objective: To report a case of crab shell impaction at the glottic level presenting only as aphonia and cough. Methods: Design: Case Report. Setting: Tertiary Government Hospital. Patient: One (1). Results: A 36-year-old male, who presented in emergency with sudden aphonia after a meal, was found to have crab shell with leg spines impacted at the glottic level. Due to its large size, ragged edges and the sharp spines stuck in the tissue, endoscopic removal needed a prior tracheostomy. All pieces were extracted, with no bleeding, laceration or tissue damage. The patient completely recovered with normal vocal folds and a normal voice at follow up. Conclusion Our experience suggests that an impacted foreign body may warrant a tracheostomy to secure the airway prior to extraction, and avoid any possible complications including laryngeal injury.
Human ; Male ; Larynx ; Aphonia

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Functional aphonia is characterized by incomplete closure of the vocal folds. Semi-occluded vocal tract exercise (SOVTE) allows smoothly vocal folds collision without damage to the vocal folds tissues to produce normal vocal intensity. The purpose of this study is to report the effect of SOVTE in patients with functional aphonia. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Seven patients diagnosed with functional aphonia were treated with 1-3 voice therapy sessions using voiced lip-trill, humming, Lax Vox in SOVTE. To assess the effectiveness of semi-occluded vocal tract exercise, cepstral analysis and auditory perceptual assessment were performed before and after voice therapy. RESULTS: F0 (fundamental frequency), CPP (cepstral peak prominence) and L/H ratio (low/high spectral ratio) were significantly increased, while CPP Standard deviation, L/H ratio Standard deviation were decreased. In addition, ‘Grade’, ‘Breathiness’ and ‘Asthenia’ were significantly decreased in the GRBAS scale after SOVTE (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In our study, SOVTE seemed to be effective to elicit voice quickly and promote vocal folds vibration without muscular effort in patients with functional aphonia.
Aphonia ; Humans ; Methods ; Vibration ; Vocal Cords ; Voice

Block anesthesia of inferior alveolar nerve is commonly used in oral clinic service, but aphonia is rare. A case of aphonia induced by block anesthesia of inferior alveolar nerve was reported and the relevant literatures were reviewed.
Anesthesia, Dental ; Aphonia ; Humans ; Male ; Mandibular Nerve ; Nerve Block

OBJECTIVETo discuss the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of iatrogenic functional aphonia.

METHODSTwenty three patients who either lost their voice or only could whisper after surgery in other hospitals were included in this study as the first group, history was well collected and laryngostroboscopy performed. All cases were confirmed as iatrogenic functional aphonia patients and received phonation therapy. In another group of patients who received vocal cord surgery in our hospital from 2003 to 2005, speaking was restricted while not prohibited after surgery, voice quality was closely observed, and 1028 cases were included.

RESULTSAll 23 cases of functional aphonia were cured with phonation therapy. No iatrogenic functional aphonia occurred in the second group of patients.

CONCLUSIONSThe iatrogenic functional aphonia can be caused by post operative mistreatment and could be cured with phonation therapy, and it is preventable if speaking is not strictly prohibited after surgery.

Adult ; Aphonia ; diagnosis ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Iatrogenic Disease ; prevention & control ; Male ; Middle Aged

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Acute Disease ; therapy ; Adult ; Aphonia ; therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Young Adult

Laryngeal foreign body can be a life-threatening emergency. Respiratory distress, aphonia, and cyanosis may occur in quick succession. However, in case of a non-obstructive laryngeal foreign body, symptoms can be indolent, but the hazardous foreign body can nevertheless put the patient in danger. To prevent life-threatening consequences, early detection based on symptoms is imperative. This case, which presented with usual symptoms of anterior neck pain and throat discomfort without respiratory symptoms and an unusual site of laryngeal foreign body, finally turned out to be an impacted fish bone in the subglottis.
Aphonia ; Cyanosis ; Emergencies ; Foreign Bodies ; Humans ; Laryngoscopes ; Larynx ; Neck Pain ; Pharynx ; Trachea

Tracheal agenesis is the rare and uniformly lethal anomaly that presents with severe respiratory distress and aphonia after birth. In this anomaly, the trachea is usually absent and air is reaching the bronchi through a communication with the esophagus. The diagnosis should be suspected in a nowborn infant with respiratory distress whose intubation is difficult. We report an autopy case of tracheal agenesis, type 2 in a female newborn infant: Complete tracheal agenesis with the fistula between the esophagus and the carina. Associated anomalies were bilobed right lung, Meckel's divericulum and ventricular septal defect.
Aphonia ; Autopsy* ; Bronchi ; Diagnosis ; Esophagus ; Female ; Fistula ; Heart Septal Defects, Ventricular ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Intubation ; Lung ; Parturition ; Trachea

Spasmodic dysphonia is a primary task specific focal dystonia affecting the laryngeal muscle during speech. Adductor spasmodic dysphonia (ADSD) affects close to 90% of spasmodic dysphonia patients is characterized by voice breaks during vowels during speech due to intermittent hyperadduction of the vocal folds. Abcuctor spasmodic dysphonia (ABSD) is relatively rare and involves intermittent voiceless voice breaks due to prolonged voiceless consonants before initiation of the following vowels. Treatment for spasmodic dysphonia has been aimed at denervation or adjustment of the larynx to prevent the uncontrolled spasms in the laryngeal muscles from interfering with voice production. As a result there is a risk-benefit ratio in that the denervation must be adequate to reduce the detection of symptoms whereas at the same time not producing aphonia, breathiness and swallowing difficulties. This article summarizes the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of the spasmodic dysphonia.
Aphonia ; Deglutition ; Denervation ; Dysphonia ; Dystonia ; Dystonic Disorders ; Humans ; Laryngeal Muscles ; Larynx ; Spasm ; Vocal Cords ; Voice ; Voice Disorders

Due to increasing participation in outdoor activities, many people visit the emergency room for various symptoms after mistaking poisonous plants for medicinal herbs. The toxicity of Arisaematis rhizome is due to its content of calcium oxalate, which causes painful oropharyngeal edema, hypersalivation, aphonia, oral ulceration, esophageal erosion, and hypocalcemia. We report a case of accidental poisoning after chewing and spitting of the root of A. rhizome, resulting in focal symptoms-such as oral pain, swelling and drooling-that required only conservative management. A 54-year-old male and his 58-year-old wife developed oral pain, swelling and drooling after accidentally chewing and spitting the root of the A. rhizome plant as a medicinal herb. Their symptoms started immediately after chewing on and spitting out the root of A. rhizome, and they were unable to speak due to oral pain, swelling, and hypersalivation on arrival at the emergency department. They were treated with antihistamines and corticosteroids and painkillers. A few hours after treatment, they had improved and were discharged from the hospital.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Aphonia ; Calcium Oxalate ; Edema ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Histamine Antagonists ; Humans ; Hypocalcemia ; Male ; Mastication ; Middle Aged ; Oral Ulcer ; Plants ; Plants, Medicinal ; Plants, Toxic ; Poisoning* ; Rhizome ; Sialorrhea ; Spouses