'Otolaryngology' posts

You have seen an otolaryngologist about a voice problem and have now been referred for voice therapy. And you may wonder - what in the world will that involve?  You might think, I already know how to talk! 

Voice production is complex. It involves many muscles, multiple systems, and the balance and coordination of these systems in order to produce a healthy voice. Often these muscles or systems can become tight, strained, or imbalanced.  This can either cause a voice problem, or result from a voice problem.  The system can also become imbalanced following voice strain; with a weak vocal fold or a vocal fold lesion; after a cold; or from other sources of throat irritation such as reflux.

Think about pulling a muscle in your back.  Over time, other muscles may become strained by trying to guard, protect or compensate for the initial muscle injury. Your throat is like that too, although many people don’t realize it until something goes wrong with their voice.

Voice therapy is like physical therapy for your voice.  Just like athletes work with trainers and physical therapists after an injury, people with vocal issues benefit from working with a speech pathologist.

During voice therapy sessions you may be asked to:

• Do you have a problem hearing over the telephone?
• Do you have trouble following the conversation when two or more people are talking at the same time?
• Do people complain that you turn the TV volume up too high?
• Do you have to strain to understand conversation?
• Do you have trouble hearing in a noisy background?
• Do you find yourself asking people to repeat themselves?
• Do many people you talk to seem to mumble (or not speak clearly)?
• Do you misunderstand what others are saying and respond inappropriately?
• Do you have trouble understanding the speech of women and children?
• Do people get annoyed because you misunderstand what they say?

If you or a loved one answered yes to three or more of the above questions, you may want to make an appointment with an otolaryngologist (an ear, nose and throat specialist) and/or an audiologist for a hearing evaluation.

Hearing loss can be caused by ...

Many people suffer from difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) acutely or chronically. Difficulty with swallowing may be a result of a problem anywhere from the lips to the stomach. It may be identified by weight loss, coughing or choking when eating, delayed cough or regurgitation, or outright obstruction. This is more likely to be an issue after a stroke or in elderly and frail individuals. In the inpatient population, symptoms suggesting some level of dysphagia may be as high as 34%. So what do you do if you feel like your swallow isn’t quite right?

Novelist Anthony Burgess once said, “Laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you sleep alone”.

It’s a saying that hits home for many. Chronic snoring is an embarrassing problem for sufferers and a source of aggravation for their loved ones. From loving and maybe not so loving nudges to ear plugs, the weary-eyed partners of snorers often finally move on to seek shelter from the nightly onslaught in a far away quiet room in the house.

(Single folks are not immune as any overnight trips with friends, business partners, potential mates becomes a source of anxiety and embarrassment.)

Snoring occurs because during sleep, the muscles that helps to keep the airway open relaxes and the resulting narrowing and turbulence can cause vibrations that lead to snoring.

After a more serious condition called Obstructive Sleep Apnea has been sufficiently ruled out, try these steps to help with snoring:

A voice is an amazing thing.

With our voice, we convey information, express emotion and provide entertainment. We each have our own unique vocal ‘fingerprint’ that allows our friends to recognize us when we call them on the phone. We rely on our voice to win a debate, negotiate a contract, reassure a frightened child, and to celebrate a victory. Our tone conveys honesty, anger, happiness and fear. A song can inspire a spectrum of emotions, and recall past memories.

So how does our voice work? And what do you do when it doesn’t work?

Voice is produced when air is pushed up from the lungs to the level of the vocal cords. The vocal cords vibrate, producing sound. The vocal cords tense, lengthen and stretch to produce different frequencies. The sound is then shaped by the upper airway to add resonance and articulation resulting in speech or song.

The vocal cords themselves are thin bands of tissue over muscle. They sit within a framework that has a complex nerve supply and multiple paired muscles that allow very nuanced changes in vibration of the vocal cords, well demonstrated in professional singers.

Subtle differences in vibration or movement can ...

SEATTLE, Oct. 9, 2012 - On Tuesday, Oct. 2, Eleanor Day, 79, underwent a cochlear implant procedure at Swedish/Cherry Hill by Dr. Douglas Backous, medical director of the Center for Hearing and Skull Base Surgery. Her procedure was the world’s first live-instagrammed and live-tweeted cochlear implant (hearing restoration) surgery (click here to see a recap). This Wednesday, Oct. 10, Swedish will live stream Mrs. Day’s cochlear implant activation, in which she will potentially hear her husband’s voice without the help of hearing aids for the first time in five years. The Days have been married for 60 years.

SEATTLE, Sept. 26, 2012 - Swedish Medical Center and Douglas Backous, M.D., medical director of the Center for Hearing and Skull Base Surgery at the Swedish Neuroscience Institute, will host the world’s first live-instagrammed and live-tweeted cochlear implant (hearing restoration) surgery on Tuesday, Oct. 2 at 7 a.m. Pacific Time (PT).