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A voice prosthesis (plural prostheses) is an artificial device, usually made of silicone that is used in conjunction with voice therapy to help laryngectomized patients to speak. During a total laryngectomy, the entire voice box is removed and the windpipe and food pipe are separated from each other. During this operation an opening between the ...
Indications include voice rehabilitation for patients who are undergoing a total laryngectomy (primary puncture) or patients who have had a total laryngectomy in the past (secondary puncture). Contra-indications are mainly related to the use of the voice prosthesis and not the puncture procedure itself. It is important to have healthy tissue at ...
People receiving voice rehabilitation report best voice quality and overall quality of life when using a voice prosthesis as compared to esophageal speech or electrolarynx. [39] Furthermore, individuals going through non-surgical therapy report a higher quality of life than those having undergone a total laryngectomy. [39]
Along with developing esophageal voice, using a speech synthesizer, or undergoing a surgical procedure, the electrolarynx serves as a mode of speech recovery for laryngectomy patients. [2] [3] The Voice Quality Symbol for electrolaryngeal phonation in speech is И, approximating the symbol for electricity.
After a total laryngectomy, the upper airways are bypassed and breathing in and out occurs through the tracheostoma in the neck which means that the inhaled air flows directly into the lungs. These anatomical changes lead, among others, to changes in voice production, breathing, and olfaction. The nasal functions of regulating the temperature ...
Another option for restoring speech after a laryngectomy is the tracheoesophageal puncture or TEP. In this simple surgical procedure, a small puncture is made between the trachea and the esophagus, and a one-way air valve is inserted. This air supply can be used to cause vibrations of the pharyngoesophageal sphincter in a similar manner to ...
The device consists of a combination of HME and an automatic speaking valve. The valve closes automatically when exhaling air for speaking, enabling the pulmonary air to be diverted through the tracheoesophageal voice prosthesis into the esophagus. It reopens automatically when exhalation decreases.
Voice therapy consists of techniques and procedures that target vocal parameters, such as vocal fold closure, pitch, volume, and quality. This therapy is provided by speech-language pathologists and is primarily used to aid in the management of voice disorders, [1] or for altering the overall quality of voice, as in the case of transgender voice therapy.