Can Transcutaneous Laryngeal Ultrasonography Systematically Quantify Vocal Fold Movement?-A Feasibility Study

Several studies have assessed adult vocal fold movement using transcutaneous laryngeal ultrasonography (TLUSG) during the perioperative period of thyroidectomy. However, the movement was not objectively quantified. This study aimed to provide a feasible and objective method for assessing vocal fold movement using TLUSG.

Feasibility study.

TLUSG was performed during calm breathing and breath-holding in healthy adult volunteers. The morphology and anatomy of the larynx were observed and measured using an ultrasonic self-contained measurement function. At the end of the calm inspiratory and breath-holding phases, vocal fold angle, vocal fold length, distance from vocal process to the midline, distance from anterior vocal commissure to arytenoid cartilage, distance from false vocal fold to the midline, and distance from the anterior horn of thyroid cartilage to false vocal fold were measured. Data were analyzed using a t test (significance <0.05).

The ultrasonic images were satisfactory in all 40 healthy adult volunteers (age 19-35 years; body mass index 18.55-23.93 kg/m²; 20 men and 20 women). There were no significant differences in all laryngeal parameters between the left and right sides in both phases (P > 0.05). Moreover, all differences in laryngeal parameters between the end of the calm inspiratory phase and the breath-holding phase were statistically significant (P < 0.05), regardless of sex.

The relevant positional parameters of the vocal fold, arytenoid cartilage, and false vocal fold and their differences before and after vocal fold movement in healthy adult volunteers can be obtained objectively using TLUSG.