Having hoarseness is a condition that narrows one’s identity, spirit and life. It can be a harbinger of very important diseases.
What Causes Hoarseness?
Any condition that affects the functioning of the vocal cords, the organ that produces sound, can cause a voice disorder. Lung diseases, changes in the vocal cords and diseases in the throat can cause hoarseness. Hoarseness is not the only symptom of these diseases. Although hoarseness is the most common symptom, it can also manifest itself with many other symptoms.
What are the Symptoms of Voice Disorder?
- Hoarseness or breathing
- Audio pauses
- Limited vocal range, inability to produce fine sounds
- Reduced power of sound
- Inability to shout, difficulty speaking out loud
- Difficulty being heard in noisy places
- Sound “fatigue” or discomfort and distortion due to prolonged use
- Shortness of breath when speaking
- Persistent cough that does not go away
- Frequent throat clearing
- Difficulty breathing
- Difficulty swallowing
If hoarseness lasting longer than two weeks or the symptoms mentioned above occur, especially in smokers, they should be evaluated by a physician trained in vocal cord diseases.
The impact of voice disorders can affect everyone at different levels; what is important for one person may not be important for another. Part of this difference is due to the person’s expectations, but an important factor is how they use their voice in their life and how much they need it.
Who Has Hoarseness?
Performing artists, teachers, lawyers, salespeople and customer service personnel, managers are the professions that most frequently experience voice disorders.
There are different examination techniques in vocal cord examination. The most important of these is a special endoscopy technique called stroboscopy, which allows us to see the fluctuations of the vocal cords. It is only possible to recognize every problem in the vocal cords in the real sense when a person specialized in this field evaluates the stroboscopy examination. This endoscopy can be performed through the mouth and/or nose in patients. The important thing here is to choose the appropriate method.
There are different treatment methods for diseases of the vocal cords. The main groups of these treatment methods are as follows. Drug therapy, voice therapy, microscopic vocal cord surgery, vocal cord filling, vocal cord botox, vocal cord laser surgery and vocal cord implant surgery. Some of these surgeries are performed under general anesthesia, while others are performed under local anesthesia. You can click on the links for detailed information about these surgeries.
What are the Diseases Causing Hoarseness?
The medical conditions that cause hoarseness can be found below.