Fat Injection Laryngoplasty Helps Patients with Vocal Cord Paralysis

Fat injections can help restore normal speech and improve quality of life for patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis, according to a new study.

Researchers at Chang Gung University (Taoyuan, Taiwan) conducted a longitudinal outcomes evaluation study involving 33 consecutive patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis who underwent autologous fat injection laryngoplasty, with preoperative and serial postoperative follow-up at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (Taipei, Taiwan); the researchers used small amounts of fat removed from a patient's own belly. Main outcome measures were voice laboratory measurements, Voice Outcome Survey (VOS), and the 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SFHS).

The results showed that voice quality, measured by testing and surveys, showed significant improvements starting a month after surgery and lasting a year. When researchers tested vitality, social functioning, and whether physical or emotional problems interfered with a person's normal role, the subjects were below normal before the surgery; after surgery, all aspects had improved significantly, aside from physical function. Overall, 27 patients responded to a requested patient satisfaction surgery, with 88.9% of them saying their experience was good, very good, or excellent. The study was published in the May 2010 issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery.

"Fat injection laryngoplasty seems to be effective in enhancing acoustic and quality of life outcomes in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis; the effect is sustainable over 12 months,” concluded lead author Tuan-Jen Fang, M.D., and colleagues of the department of otolaryngology.

Although some cases of vocal cord paralysis do not require treatment, and others can be fixed using voice therapy, surgery is often needed. Such surgery involves bringing the inactive vocal cord closer to the healthy one, to improve speech and make swallowing easier. Surgeons have used a wide variety of materials in these surgeries, from collagen to Teflon, although the latter has been largely abandoned because of troubling growths that resulted.

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