Vocal rehabilitation after total laryngectomy using the Provox voice prosthesis

Vocal rehabilitation in laryngectomized patients can be attained by surgical (tracheoesophageal speech) or conservative methods (oesophageal speech or artificial larynx). We prospectively studied voice restoration in 37 patients who underwent total laryngectomy in the period from February 1991 to February 1993. The patients were given the opportunity to assess both non-shunt oesophageal speech and shunt oesophageal speech using the Provox voice prosthesis. The Provox low resistance, self-retaining voice prosthesis is a biflanged device made of silicon rubber. A primary tracheoesophageal puncture was made in 28 patients, while a secondary puncture was performed in another nine patients. The results were assessed according to criteria established at the 'Third International Congress on Voice Prosthesis' in Groningen (1988). Functional tracheoesophageal speech after primary puncture was achieved in 95% of patients 12 months after puncture, while oesophageal voice was acquired by 55%. Only minor surgical and prosthesis-related complications were encountered during this follow-up period in 29% of the patients. The device lifetime varied from 3 months to at least 2 years (mean 5.4 months).