Voice Rehabilitation After Laryngeal Transplantation: Own Experience.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Laryngeal transplantation (LT) remains an infrequently performed procedure due to well-defined and limited medical indications. The challenges include a very complicated surgery, continuous immunosuppressive treatment, as well as post-transplant rehabilitation of voice, speech, and swallowing. The aim of this paper is to describe a model of voice and speech rehabilitation after LT, based on our own experience.

STUDY

DESIGN

Observational study.

METHOD: Presented here are the rehabilitation processes of two patients who had previously undergone LT as well as their pre- and postrehabilitation voice outcomes. Both patients underwent voice, speech, and swallowing rehabilitation in the fifth month after LT.

RESULTS

One of the patients had a significant improvement in voice quality. While, the other did not regain his natural, sonorous voice, but he scored very high on a voice self-assessment test.

CONCLUSION

Voice rehabilitation after LT is a complex and long-term process that requires the involvement of a team of specialists. The optimal anatomical conditions restored during surgery, the patient's motivation and the support of professionals make it possible to return to normal verbal communication.