[Respiration rhythm-controlled electric stimulation of paralyzed laryngeal muscles--animal experiment findings].

Patients with bilateral paresis of the recurrent laryngeal nerves have primarily breathing difficulties. But on the other hand the common operations for widening the glottis produce voice problems. To overcome these difficulties a muscle stimulation device was developed, which is triggered by the inspiratory motion of the thorax. With this device impulses are transmitted by radiofrequency from a transmitter located outside the body to a receiver implanted into subcutaneous tissue of the neck and thence by electrode wires to the posterior cricoarytenoid muscle (PCA). In the dogs with one cut recurrent laryngeal nerve the paralyzed vocal cord (VC) moved regularly with abductions at inspiration by stimulating the PCA. The efficiency of that stimulating device was proved by taking photographs of the VC-motion and by recording the subglottal air pressure changes.