Clinic opening

Ilsan Paik Hospital opened the ‘Speech and Language Therapy Room’ on April 7, 2015. The speech and language therapy room performs precise speech and language evaluations on patients with voice and pronunciation problems, and based on this, otolaryngology-head and neck surgeons and professional speech therapists work together to provide surgical treatment and drug treatment.

Targeted diseases include vocal fold mucosal diseases (vocal fold nodules, vocal fold polyps, vocal fold cysts, vocal fold edema), neurological diseases (unilateral and bilateral vocal cord paralysis), malignant laryngeal diseases (leukoplakia, laryngeal cancer), and functional voice disorders (spasmodic dysphonia). It treats diseases such as muscle tension dysphonia), laryngeal trauma, and articulation disorders (frenulum shortening). The test takes approximately 30 to 40 minutes, including laryngeal prostroboscopy to evaluate vocal fold vibration during speech and acoustic evaluation using a precise analysis device (Computerized Speech Lab, KayPentax).

Voice therapy provides education on basic lifestyle habits to develop a good voice. If necessary, professional voice therapy is provided periodically for 5 to 10 weeks in the speech and language therapy room. Afterwards, the patient's condition, progress, and whether goals have been achieved are monitored. We will re-evaluate accordingly.

Voice deformation can be caused by excessive use of the throat, such as suddenly shouting excessively, talking for a long time, or singing too many songs, causing the voice to sink or change. This is because the vocal cords vibrate more than usual, and the friction causes the vocal cord mucosa to become congested and swollen, preventing normal vibration. Voice disorders can be caused by overuse or misuse of the voice, diseases such as acid reflux, neurological disorders, or problems with medication. Representative diseases include laryngitis, vocal cord nodules, vocal cord paralysis, and malignant tumors.

If the voice changes due to some cause and the changed voice persists for more than 2 weeks and does not recover, abnormalities in the vocal cords may be suspected. Therefore, it is recommended to conduct treatment by identifying the cause through a detailed laryngeal examination and voice function test.

1. Speech and language rehabilitation

We diagnose and treat the pathophysiology and mechanisms of voice and language disorders, and provide patients with state-of-the-art medical care, including voice surgery and drug injection treatment, depending on the type and aspect.

2. Voice evaluation

Case study, evaluation by observation, laboratory evaluation (acoustic evaluation, aerodynamic evaluation, auditory cognitive evaluation, visual evaluation)

3. Main symptoms of voice disorders

● Hoarseness

● Vocal fatigue

● Weak voice as if out of breath (breathiness)

● Reduced phonational range

● Loss of voice (aphonia)

● Voice cracks and inappropriate pitch (pitch breaks or inappropriately high or low pitch)

● Strained/struggle voice

● Tremor

4. Causes of voice disorders

(1) Medical problem

- Disease: acid reflux, asthma, thyroid problems

- Neurological problems: cerebrovascular accident, traumatic brain injury, degenerative disease

- Medication: diuretics, antidepressants, antipsychotics

(2) Problems caused by hyperfunctional voice

- Vocalabuse behavior

- Vocal misuse behavior

(3) Problems with vocal hygiene: smoking, drinking, eating habits

(4) Environmental problems: environmental noise, occupational environment, smoke and air pollution, indoor dryness

(5) Psycho-emotional problems: anxiety and depression, conversion disorder

5. Phonosurgery

Laryngeal microsurgery, laser laryngeal microsurgery, thyroid chondroplasty, arytenoid cartilage adduction, collagen injection, BOTOX injection, etc.

6. Speech language therapy

Detailed evaluation and treatment of voice or language disorders is performed by a professional speech-language therapist.