Early Injection Laryngoplasty After Surgery: 30 Cases and Proposed Aspiration Assessment Protocol.

Area of Science:

• Otolaryngology
• Speech-Language Pathology
• Surgical Recovery

Background:

• Vocal fold movement impairment (VFMI) negatively impacts postoperative recovery and quality of life.
• Limited literature and no standard protocol exist for evaluating postoperative swallowing and aspiration.
• Acute VFMI requires timely diagnosis and treatment to prevent complications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of early vocal fold (VF) injection laryngoplasty for acute postoperative VFMI.
• To assess swallowing and aspiration outcomes following VF injection laryngoplasty.
• To propose an interdisciplinary assessment protocol for aspiration and swallowing.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of 30 adult patients undergoing early VF injection laryngoplasty for acute postoperative VFMI (<30 days).
• Inclusion of patients with pre- and postinjection speech-language pathologist (SLP) swallowing/aspiration evaluations.
• Analysis of demographics, clinical characteristics, procedural details, and oral intake outcomes.

Main Results:

• 81.8% of patients with nil per os (nothing by mouth) status pre-injection showed oral diet advancement post-procedure.
• Most patients received injections within 5 days of evaluation and 14 days of injury.
• Injections were primarily performed bedside (awake, transcutaneous), with no reported complications.

Conclusions:

• Acute VFMI necessitates prompt diagnosis and therapeutic strategies to mitigate postoperative complications.
• VF injection laryngoplasty is effective in improving oral intake for patients with acute VFMI.
• An Otolaryngology-SLP interdisciplinary protocol for aspiration and swallowing assessment is recommended.