Cause of Hoarseness

Hoarseness is a condition used to describe unusual changes to your voice. This condition causes the vocal tone to sound labored and gravelly. There will be noticeable changes to the volume and how high or low your voice sounds. Disorders occurring within the voice box are usually the cause of these changes. Any conditions that affect the voice box will alter vocal cords and create voice changes.

Causes

• Most causes of hoarseness are not severe and disappear within a short time period. Utilizing your voice excessively can cause the symptoms to be prolonged. Those who careers depend upon vocal usage (singers, speakers and teachers) usually experience severe cases of hoarseness.

Conditions

• Some common conditions associated with hoarseness are polyps, laryngitis, vocal lesions and hemorrhaging, smoking and laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPRD). In older adults, gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) is a condition in which stomach acid is a direct cause of hoarseness. Less common conditions are thyroid conditions, voice box damage and menstruation.

Consultation

• Consult with a physician for evaluation if you are not sick, experience difficulty swallowing, pain when speaking, notice a lump in then neck and cough up blood. If you are a smoker, seek treatment if hoarseness is present for more than two weeks.

Diagnoses

• An otolaryngologist (ENT) will question your history of hoarseness during a health assessment. Vocal cords are checked with a mirror or a fiber-optic scope placed behind the throat or through the nose. Stroboscopes (slow-motion video cameras) are used to assist in analyzing the vocal folds. Special tests are also available that assess volume, airflow and other anomalies that affect voice quality. These procedures are tolerable for most patients and necessary to evaluate serious cases of hoarseness.

Treatment

• Courses of treatment are dependent upon the conditions cause. Mild instances of hoarseness are treatable by limiting use of vocal cords and increasing fluid intake. Severe cases may require surgery to remove polyps or lesions. Speech pathologists may be necessary to teach patients alternative speech methods. Singing-related hoarseness is treatable by improving vocal techniques.

Prevention

• The following are preventative measures that can decrease your risk of becoming hoarse: limit voice use, use a microphone when available, quit smoking or avoid secondhand smoke, increase water intake, decrease intake of alcohol and caffeine, limit spicy foods and humidify your home.