Potential Effects of Rhinoplasty on Voice in Professional Voice Users

Surgical procedures involving the manipulation of the airway structure have the potential to affect the quality of voice by changing the resonance properties. Regarding this, the present study was conducted to investigate the effect of rhinoplasty on the voice of professional voice users.

This cohort study was conducted on 30 professional voice users. For the purpose of the study, the patients completed the Voice Handicap Index (VHI). In addition, they were subjected to voice analysis that included the measurement of nasality in speech production (i.e., nasalance), using the nasometer II. Computerized speech lab was also utilized to examine vowels /e/ and /a/, each of which was sustained for 5 sec by the participants.

The mean VHI scores were 8.5 ± 1.98 and 7.36 ± 1.71 before and after the surgery, respectively, indicating no significant difference between the two investigated stages (Z = - 0.53, P = 0.59). However, there was a significant difference between the patients with and without preoperative obstruction in terms of the VHI score (χ²= 11.06, P = 0.004). With regard to orality, it had the mean values of 16.86 ± 7.45 and 15.22 ± 7.37 before and after the surgery, respectively. Furthermore, the mean values of nasality at the pre- and post-operation stages were 59.42 ± 6.04 and 56.28 ± 10.07, respectively. The comparison between the pre- and post-surgical orality and nasality revealed no significant difference (t = 1.226, P = 0.23 and t = 0.93, P = 0.36, respectively).

Although rhinoplasty is supposed to affect voice and vocal resonation, the induced changes are not problematic for the professional voice users.

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