- How to Care for a New Body Piercing
- Talking to a Loved One Battling Substance Abuse: Staying Positive Is Key
- RSV Vaccine Given in Pregnancy to Help Shield Newborns Receives Full U.S. Approval
- Many Americans Frustrated in Search for Low-Cost COVID Boosters
- In 22 U.S. States, More Than a Third of Adults Are Now Obese
- Kraft Cheese Slices Recalled Due to Plastic Wrap Choking Hazard
- Kids’ ER Visits for Mental Health Crises Rise When School Term Begins
- Medicaid Reinstated for Nearly 500,000 Children and Families: CMS
- Newer Diabetes Meds Might Not Work as Well in Black Patients
- Vaping Raises a Teen’s Odds of Developing Asthma
Study Examines Effort to Preserve Voice During Thyroid Surgery
Close monitoring of the vocal cords during thyroid removal surgery benefits people who use their voice to make a living, according to a new study.
Researchers assessed a new approach on 30 voice professionals — including opera singers, Motown recording artists, a TV weather forecaster and rabbi cantors — who had all or part of the thyroid gland removed surgically (thyroidectomy).
This type of surgery can lead to vocal cord problems, said the authors of the study. It was scheduled for presentation Friday at the annual meeting of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists in Las Vegas.
“We do know that thyroid surgery is associated with nerve injury, vocal cord paralysis or nerve paralysis that can occur in up to 10 percent of thyroidectomies and can lead to voice loss and difficulty swallowing, so these are very, very important complications to avoid,” Dr. Gregory Randolph, of Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, said in an association news release.
“These issues are magnified when you’re dealing with a patient where such complications would not only involve loss of voice, but loss of career,” added Randolph, director of general otolaryngology and the division of thyroid and parathyroid surgery at the hospital.
The patients in the study had their vocal cords closely monitored during thyroid surgery, and all them had vocal cord function after the surgery.
Monitoring including fitting an endotrachial tube — which is used to help patients breathe while under general anesthesia — with electrodes that provided real-time data about the electrical activity of the vocal cords and nerves.
It’s also important for doctors to visually examine the back of the throat before and after surgery, Randolph said.
Research presented at meetings is considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.
More information
The American Thyroid Association has more about thyroid surgery.
Source: HealthDay
Copyright © 2023 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Related
-
An OTC Contraceptive Pill Is Coming Soon, but Who Will Pay For It?The first over-the-counter birth control pill is slated to...
- September 19, 2023
-
Fertility Issues? Ovulation Tests Can Help, Study FindsA new review of clinical trials with an eye...
- September 19, 2023
-
Early-Life Removal of Ovaries Could Bring Faster AgingPremenopausal women who have surgery to remove the ovaries...
- September 14, 2023
-
Combo of Certain Birth Control Pills, Painkillers Could Raise Women’s Clot RiskIt’s well known that certain forms of birth control...
- September 8, 2023
