Is dysphonia permanent or temporary after anterior cervical approach?

• DOI: 10.1007/s00586-007-0489-5
• Publication Date: 2007-09-07T07:58:50Z
• Authors: Serdar Kahraman; Sait Sirin; Ersin Erdogan; Cem Atabey; Mehmet Daneyemez; Engin Gonul
• Keywords: Adult; Male; Neck Pain; Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve; Iatrogenic Disease; Recovery of Function; Middle Aged; Neurosurgical Procedures; Time; 3. Good health; 03 medical and health sciences; Postoperative Complications; 0302 clinical medicine; Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve Injuries; Cervical Vertebrae; Humans; Female; Radiculopathy; Vocal Cord Paralysis; Intervertebral Disc Displacement; Aged; Diskectomy; Retrospective Studies

The rate, causes and prognosis of dysphonia after anterior cervical approach (ACA) were investigated in our clinical series. During a 10-year interval, 235 consecutive patients with cervical disc disease underwent surgical treatment using anterior approach. Retrospective chart reviews showed recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) injury in 3 (1.27%) patients. All three patients were men and only one patient had multilevel surgery. These patients had RLN injury after virgin surgery. Laryngoscopic examination demonstrated unilateral vocal cord paralysis in all patients who had postoperative dysphonia. No permanent dysphonia was observed in our series and patients recovered after a mean of 2 months (range 1-3 months) duration. Dysphonia after ACA was a rare complication in our clinical series. Pressure on RLN or retraction may result in temporary dysphonia.