Precision treatment of post pneumonectomy unilateral laryngeal paralysis due to cancer.

Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of external laryngeal medialization acquired through a Gore-Tex implant in a 45 patients affected by unilateral vocal fold paralysis in abduction after pneumonectomy. Method: The cohort of patients was made up of 30 male (73.1%) and 11 female patients (26.9%) with an average age of 66.7 years in a range between 46 and 78 years.

Results

The results were analyzed with the objective and subjective analysis of voicing and swallowing. In 95.2% of cases, voice and swallow improvement with statistically significant evidences.

Conclusion

We can conclude that Gore-Tex implantation is a simple, reproducible and minimally invasive procedure for management of selected cases of vocal fold unilateral paralysis in the abductory position.