A survey by the UT Southwestern Voice Center shows profiles of hundreds of injured singers: Newsroom

Leslie Childs, MD

Dallas – May 4, 2022 – An analysis of more than 400 singers seeking treatment for voice injuries at the UT Southwestern Medical Center is rich in topics that are often considered taboo to discuss in the singing community. Data is provided.

Survey results published in LaryngoscopeAfter that, it shows that only 1 in 7 people needed surgery for injuries that could not be resolved by voice therapy or other conservative management. Researchers have determined which voice injuries are most common by gender, age, training, and professional / amateur status, and what treatment these patients subsequently needed.

“The danger is really high when you are an injured singer, especially when you rely on singing to earn a living. Injured singers are prejudiced about injuries, so about injuries I often hesitate to talk or ask questions to my colleagues and the community, “says the research leader. Leslie Childs, MD, Associate Professor of Otolaryngology – Head of Head and Neck Surgery and Medical Center, UT Southwestern Voice Center. “There are so many opportunities to get false information, so I wanted to dispel myths and collect data to help advise patients about the facts.”

To that end, Dr. Childs and his colleagues, Dr. Ashwin Lao, MD, UTSW Resident, Ted Mau, MD, Ph.D., Professor of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery reviewed the charts of all singers seeking care for voice injuries at the Voice Center between 2011 and 2019. A total of 438 patients between the ages of 8 and 78 who had not previously undergone surgery to correct their voice folds were injured during this period.

Preoperative image of a polyp in the patient’s vocal cords

After searching for patterns, researchers found that the most common injury to date was the nodule, a polyp-like injury that affected 58% of these singers, followed by a blistering-like injury called a pseudocyst. Was found to be an injury, as well as bleeding of polyps, cysts, and voice folds. .. Female singers were more likely to develop nodules and pseudocysts, but polyps and cysts were more common in male singers. Polyps developed more frequently with the age of female patients, but young male singers were more likely to develop nodules.

Dr. Childs and her colleagues have found that professional status and lack of prior voice training are the greatest risk factors. Professional singers who did not take audio lessons were eight times more likely to need surgery than amateur singers who had previously taken audio lessons.

The increased risk among professional singers is probably due to the longer singing time overall, but its implications for vocal training are unclear, Dr. Childs said. Training can improve voice proficiency, and the history of voice lessons can make it easier for the injured to follow voice treatment protocols.

Anyway, she added, the data helps doctors reassure patients seeking help at the voice center.

“Voice injuries can be devastating for both amateur and professional singers, but our research suggests that these injuries do not have to end their careers. “Dr. Childs said. “Conservative management allows most singers to get back on track.”

UT Southwestern Voice Center, one of the largest in the South, employs a collaborative and interdisciplinary team of enthusiastic voice care specialists to care for injured singers. Some of the members of the Voice Center are singers in their own right. Dr. Childs is a classic trained soprano with experience in various professional chamber ensembles as well as recording Walt Disney Records, and the Voice Center’s six linguistic pathologists are all singers.

“We are very proud to provide this personal experience to our patients and to be able to speak the unique language used by the singer,” she said.

About UT Southwestern Medical Center

UT Southwestern is one of the leading academic medical centers in the United States, integrating pioneering biomedical research with outstanding clinical care and education. The institution’s faculty has won six Nobel Prizes and includes 26 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 14 researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Over 2,900 full-time faculty members are responsible for breakthrough medical advances and are committed to rapidly transforming science-led research into new clinical therapies. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in more than 80 disciplines and oversee nearly 4 million outpatients annually for more than 100,000 inpatients and more than 360,000 emergency room cases. increase.