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Hoarseness in Laryngitis


My sister called up yesterday complaining of hoarseness. It apparently started with a sore throat and a nonproductive cough with low-grade febrile episode 7 days ago. She took some antibiotics and cough medications but no relief was noted. Clearly, she is suffering from laryngitis.

Laryngitis is an irritation and swelling of the voice box and the area around it. It causes the voice to change, or you may lose your voice entirely for a short while. With or without treatment, it is expected to resolve in 7 to 14 days. It is usually caused by a virus or by bacteria. People who smoke, have allergies, or strain their voices by yelling, talking, or singing may also come down with the problem. The classic symptoms are a hoarse, low voice, and a scratchy throat. Other people may also lose their voice, develop a sore throat, come down with a fever, feel a lump in their throat, or feel very tired.

As an ENT specialist, I usually advise voice rest if these symptoms have been present for only a few days or occur immediately following an episode of using the voice more than normal, like singing in a karaoke bar or speaking for an hour or two.
The advice is as follows:
  • Do not use your voice for several days. Either speak very softly or write notes until you can talk normally.
  • Use a cool-mist humidifier (vaporizer) to increase air moisture and help relieve the tight feeling in your throat. Hot, steamy showers can also help.
  • Do not drink alcohol or smoke until your voice is back to normal.
  • Get plenty of rest.
  • Drink extra fluids, such as water, fruit juice, and tea.
  • If you have symptoms that suggest a virus is present, such as low-grade fever, cough, nasal congestion, runny nose, muscle aches, or feeling run down, then you should be sure to drink lots of fluids and take paracetamol for your symptoms as well.
  • If the symptoms persist despite of these, consult your ENT doctor.
Chronic laryngitis should be a concern. If you have a change in your voice or hoarseness that lasts more than 2-3 weeks, then see the ENT doctor. This long-term voice change could be caused by an easily treatable condition such as acid-reflux or being exposed to a substance that continues to irritate the vocal cords. It might be the first sign of a serious condition, however, such as a tumor on the voice box that needs medical attention.

Below is a video of what the larynx looks like. The procedure is a videostroboscopy. The moving 'letter V" are the vocal cords/folds. Any changes in their structure would result to voice abnormality like hoarseness.

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