Your Voice

What are vocal cords ?

Vocal cords Vocal cords are muscles, which are made of very delicate tissue When relax, healthy vocal cords form a V-shaped opening that allow air to pass freely through to the trachea. The cords open when you you breath The cords close during speech or when swallowing

Damage you could inflict on your vocal cords Damage, causes, symptoms, therapy

Damage you could inflict on your vocal cords

Polyps Polyp on vocal cord. After removing polyp..

Polyps Polyps: are noncancerous benign growths that cause They are usually only found on one of the two vocal cords. Symptoms: Chronic hoarseness and breathy voice Cause: They are the result of an acute injury. Treatment : Most need to be surgically removed for full restoration of normal voice. If caught at an early stage the damage can be reversed with cortisone Rest Avoid abusing the vocal cords Speech therapy

Nodules

Nodules are noncancerous benign growths. They occurrence on both vocal cords. Symptoms: Chronic coarseness and breathy voice. Cause: Mainly the result of abusing the vocal cords Habitual yelling singing shouting, Therapy: Voice therapy conducted by a speech therapist may be needed to teach you how not to strain your voice while speaking or singing

Contact Ulcers

Contact ulcers are raw sores on the mucous membrane covering the cartilage to which the vocal cords are attached. They most often accurse in singers, teachers, preachers, sales representatives lawyers- occupations that requires them to talk or otherwise use their voice a lot. Symptoms: Mild pain while speaking or swallowing and varying degrees of hoarseness Cause: Caused by abusing the voice with forceful speech particularly as a person starts to speak. Gastroesophageal reflux may also cause contact ulcers. Therapy : If gastroesophageal reflux is the cause of the ulcers then Taking anti- acids Avoid eating within two hours before sleeping Antibiotics also may be administered to help prevent bacterial infection while the ulcers heal. Sleeping on your back with your head elevated on two pillows.

Contact Ulcers Therapy : if misuse of the voice is the cause of ulcers Vocal rest Talking as little as possible for a minimal of six weeks so the ulcers can heal To avoid recurrence, voice therapy is needed. Sometimes a small tissue sample is removed & examined under a microscope to make sure its not cancerous and is not the result of tuberculosis.

Vocal Paralysis

Paralysis( one side or both sides) Paralysis( one side or both sides) : The inability to move the muscles that control the vocal cords. Females are more sensitive to vocal cord paralysis. Cause: It could be the result of brain disorders, such as: -Brain tumors - strokes -Demyelinating diseases -Damage to the nerve that lead to the larynx. Symptoms : May affect speaking, breathing and swallowing Paralysis may allow food and fluid to be inhaled into windpipe and lunges Symptoms in one side paralysis: Voice is hoarse and breathy Usually the airway is not obstructed because the normal vocal cord on the other side opens sufficiently

Paralysis( one side or both sides) Symptoms of two side Paralysis: The voice is reduced in strength but otherwise sounds normal. The space between the cords is very small and the airway is inadequate making even moderate exercise causes difficulty in breathing. Treatment ( one-side Paralysis) : Operation to move the paralyzed vocal cord to the best position for more normal speech This may involve inserting an adjustable spacer near the paralyzed cord Injecting a substance into the paralyzed cord to move the cords closer together. Treatment ( two-side Paralysis) : A tracheostomy may need to be performed. A Arytenoidectomy may need to be performed. Laser removal of part of one or both cords. If done correctly laser removal can preserve satisfactory voice quality and eliminate the need for a tracheostomy.

Laryngitis Laryngitis: Is the inflamation of the larynx ( the voice box ) Symptoms : Raspy voice Hoarseness Your voice will have a lower pitch than usual

Vocal Hemorrhage

Vocal hemorrhage: A blood vessel within the vocal cord fluctuates in size due to whether it is irritated from phono-trauma or even hormones. Such fluctuation in size causes the voice to change in pitch and quality on an hour to hour basis depending on how much swelling occurs. For a singer, it makes the voice unpredictable. When the blood vessel becomes engorged and traumatized, it may even rupture leading to a vocal cord hemorrhage. Especially in a woman, the blood vessel may be more prone to hemorrhage during her menstrual cycle. Treatment: Initially during an acute vocal cord hemorrhage, strict voice rest is mandatory Such treatment may resolve the hemorrhage, it will typically not get rid of the culprit blood vessel. For that, surgical intervention is required. One option is to precisely cut it out. The other option is use of a laser which which is recommend. It is relatively non-invasive and the risk of scarring is more likely to be less compared with excision.

Vocal Scarring

Cancer on the vocal cords

Tips to keep your voice healthy Quit smoking & avoid inhaling second hand smoke. Consequences : Causes redness of the vocal cords Increases mucous production making it harder to reach the higher notes of your range Thickening and even damage of the mucosa Vocal cords become swollen, fatigued and stiff Reflux laryngitis Cancer of the throat or larynx and impaired lung function Impaired lung functions will lead to you not having controlled breathing resulting in difficulty reaching the higher notes of your range Will deepen your voice and decrease your vocal range Dehydrates your vocal cords almost instantly.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Alcohol : Avoid drinking alcohol before singing as it dehydrates your vocal cords. If you adamant about consuming alcohol before singing drink enough water to compensate for the dehydration. Alcohol doesn’t damage your voice but it does cause impaired control of your vocal coordination's and depletes the body's water. Alcohol will numb the vocal cords so any existing damage or irritations wont be apparent whilst singing. This could be dangerous since you will not feel pain if you strain your voice until the affects of the alcohol wears of.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Drugs: Marijuana, cocaine, heroin ecstasy, even aspirin will affect your voice. Marijuanna: it will irritate the vocal cords and damage the lungs 10x more then cigarettes. Cocaine: Damages your sinus and nasal passages which can jeopardize your voice. Heroin & Ecstasy: inflicts great amount of stress on the voice with its endorphin effects. Aspirin: Thins out the blood witch can cause tinnitus and vocal cord hemorrhage.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Hormones: Steroids ( testosterone) will excessively enlarge the vocal cords which will result in: -having very deep voice. -Decrease in vocal range. -Cause breaks within the voice Progestin ( can be found in certain birth control pills, and is released in thought the body during a woman's menstrual cycle ) : -Deepens the voice. -Decreases vocal range. -Causes breaks within the voice.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Speech habits : The way you use your voice on a daily basis will affect your singing voice You are more likely to damage your voice whilst speaking rather then sighing Speak at a moderate speed. After speaking for a long period of time it is recommended you take at leas 20 minute break of silence. Its important to warm down your voice after speaking or singing. The muscle that controls your voice needs to cool down and stretch before before being rested. If you do not warm down your voice will be thence later. Warm down: Start from the very top of your range and slowly slide down until you reach your lowest note with the vowel “A”. Do this for 7-10

Tips to keep your voice healthy Vocal hydrations : Water intake is extremely important. Your vocal cords need to be hydrated to vibrate efficiently Drink room temperature water Minimal daily intake : 8-10 glasses of water. Your cords need time to absorb the water so its essential you drink water through out the day. Water goes down the esophagus into your stomach, not down the opening that leads t your vocal cords and trachea. The only way water affects your cords is being carried to them through the bloodstream. Doctors claim that 80% of vocal cord damage could have been avoid if the patient had drank more water.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Stress: Will cause your voice to tense up and stiffen It depletes your energy levels which is needed to sing Many causes of stress can be as simple as : -Not enough sleep -Empty stomach -Unhealthy diet If your vocal cords have already been damaged or irritated, stress will only debilitate their health even more.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Diet: Avoid dairy products ( milk, ice cream, chocolate) for at least 2-3 hours prior to singing – it cases mucous to build up which makes it harder for the vocal cords to close thus making it harder to reach your higher notes in your range. Orange juice and other citrus juices can affect the lubrication of the vocal cords. Coffee dehydrates the vocal cords and even makes you more tired after singing which can cause swollen vocal cords. Energy drink ( high in caffeine ) Junk food, refind sugars, salts Its best eating 2-3 hours prior to singing. This will stop food from straining your diaphragm as much and it will be easier to control your breathing. Digestion takes energy levels.

Tips to keep your voice healthy Environment: Humidity can make the air very heavy to breath in, even harder to sing in. Air-conditioning can cause dryness Heating can cause dryness Air pollution Dust

Tips to keep your voice healthy Colds and Viral infections : Don’t attempted to sing when your sick, have a soar throat or have a cold Try avoiding coughing since it only irritates the cords Stay hydrated Take vitamin C, Zinc Don’t take over the counter cough medicines they just numb your vocal cords and suppress them from coughing