The evolving etiology of bilateral vocal fold immobility.
Publication/Presentation Date
3-1-2003
Abstract
In the past, bilateral vocal fold immobility (BVFI) occurred most commonly after thyroidectomy. However, no large series documenting the etiology of adult BVFI has been published within the past fifteen years. This study reviews the etiologic patterns of BVFI at our institutions. We compare BVFI from before and after 1980. We also review combined studies of unilateral vocal fold immobility (UVFI) to compare and unilateral versus bilateral etiologic trends. In comparison with previously published series, fewer cases of BVFI present today as a complication of thyroid surgery and more as the result of malignancies and nonsurgical trauma. Unfortunately, BVFI caused by malignancy is not usually an initial sign of local disease, but an ominous sign of recurrence or metastases. In comparing UVFI and BVFI we found that thyroidectomy causes a higher percentage of BVFI than of UVFI. Over one-third of UVFI cases were caused by neoplasm which further underscores the potential seriousness of immobile vocal folds and the need for careful investigation.
Volume
17
Issue
1
First Page
76
Last Page
81
ISSN
0892-1997
Published In/Presented At
Feehery, J. M., Pribitkin, E. A., Heffelfinger, R. N., Lacombe, V. G., Lee, D., Lowry, L. D., Keane, W. M., & Sataloff, R. T. (2003). The evolving etiology of bilateral vocal fold immobility. Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice Foundation, 17(1), 76–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0892-1997(03)00030-4
Disciplines
Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Health and Medical Administration | Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
PubMedID
12705820
Department(s)
Administration and Leadership
Document Type
Article