Current trends in post-laryngectomy speech rehabilitation

In recent years there has been considerable interest in exploration of surgical speech rehabilitation (SSR) for the laryngectomee as an alternative to conventional management. The history of the evolution of present pneumatic and electronic methods is traced. The details of the various methods are analyzed including the phonatory neoglottis method reported by Staffieri. Algorithms are offered for the patient who is about to undergo laryngectomy, for the patient who has had laryngectomy in the past, and for the patient facing total pharyngolaryngectomy. The prospects for future developments in the field of SSR are analyzed, acknowledging that none of the present methods provides an ideal solution to the problem of laryngeal aphonia.