Phoniatrics: Information on voice disorders and treatment options

Do you have vocal complaints that aren´t due to an organic cause? A malregulatory voice disorder might be the reason (syn. functional dysphonia).

Do you suffer from a deepened and changeable voice? Then so-called Reinke edema can be behind it. In addition to measures to combat the causes such as not smoking and voice exercise therapy, in most cases surgery is an option.

Benign vocal lesions include vocal cord polyps, vocal cord nodules, or vocal cord cysts. This often leads to reduced vocal performance.

Papillomas can form in the larynx, especially on the vocal folds, due to superinfection with human papillomavirus. The medical term for this is laryngeal papillomatosis or recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. Those affected unfortunately suffer from impairment of their voice or breathing.

Unilateral vocal fold paralysis or reduced mobility of the vocal folds often leads to a hoarse voice that quickly tires. The interventional therapy options for unilateral vocal cord paralysis are injection glottoplasty, non-selective laryngeal reinnervation, thyroplasty and laryngoplasty. In the case of bilateral vocal fold paralysis, the main issues are breathing problems and reduced physical resilience.

A weak voice can be congenital or acquired. The muscle in the vocal fold can lose substance for various reasons. Similar to a unilateral laryngeal paralysis, the result is a hoarse and powerless voice. The medical term for this is vocalis muscle hypotrophy.

In the case of trans identity, there is sometimes considerable psychological strain due to a voice that does not match the desired gender identity. In addition to voice exercise therapy, phonosurgical therapy options are also available, especially for male-to-female trans identities. For more information on the transgender voice click here. We have also compiled CHARITÉ FAQs Voice and Transgender for you.

Healing is the primary concern after a tumor diagnosis of the larynx. The remaining voice function often plays an important role in quality of life after successful tumor therapy. You can find out here which special interventions are sometimes possible to improve the damaged voice function.

Subglottic stenosis is a condition where a narrowing below the vocal folds occurs. This can be due to excessive formation of connective tissue. Patient get become symptomatic by breathing difficulties and the inability to exercise. 

Do you have trouble belching or burping at all? Do you suffer from a feeling of fullness or a bloated stomach after eating? Then you could be affected by Retrograde Cricopharyngeal Dysfunction (R-CPD).

Do you know the feeling of suddenly not getting enough air? Have you already been treated with asthma sprays without improvement of these symptoms? Then you could be suffering from induced laryngeal obstruction (ILO). The ILO was formerly known as vocal cord dysfunction (VCD).

Are you a professional speaker and have annoying high-frequency clicking noises when speaking? Contact us. Sometimes there is an organic cause in the back of the nose, called the nasopharynx, which can be treated.

Appointments for an outpatient consultation can be scheduled by our admission desk. Prerequisite is a paper of referral (so called Überweisungsschein) of your GP or ENT. If you have already a paper for hospital admission (Einweisungsschein zur stationären Therapie) you my ask to schedule for a surgical intervention right away.